Code: Ragnarok
by Silius1
Summary: The last three hundred players trapped in Alfheim have finally been freed and have a chance to live life normally to a degree. However, after experiencing the virtual worlds of Aincrad and Alfheim, will the Senryaku Unit want to distance themselves from VRMMORPGs after hearing of an upcoming Alfheim tournament known as Ragnarok? This is heavily OC based, R&R.
1. Reawakening

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works._

This is...unbelievable...after three years, we are finally free from these virtual reality prisons! I can finally enjoy the wonders of real life. But after about nearly four years, and experiencing the wonders of VRMMORPGs, will our lives ever be normal again?

* * *

Author Notes:

A/N: I'm taking a shift from third to first person and Karen is being promoted to main character from her support role.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [18:15] August 4th 2025

I'm waking up in a room with a very bright white color, apparently that of a hospital room. I'm temporarily blinded because of this light and when I open my eyes, I look to the right to see a mirror, which reveals my hair having obviously lost all of the green dye I used before, revealing the true amber color of my hair. After a couple of seconds pass, I hear a familiar voice

"Karen! You're finally awake!" I hear a female voice say in great surprise.

"Huh...? What's going on...?" I say, feeling disoriented somewhat.

I feel a lot of pressure around my upper body and when my sight finally adjusts to the new environment, I see my mother: Clara Koizumi and father: Garrett Koizumi, looking both sad and happy at the same time, and a nurse who apparently was watching over me during the three years I was comatose. I move my arms slightly to find them rather frail, the looks are like when you're in water for a long time.

"You're finally back Karen..." Garrett says, and when I look at him, he's crying, I...can't exactly blame him considering how long I've been 'gone'.

"Father...I'm home..." I say crying, since I've finally returned to reality.

I hear the door open and apparently this new person walks in rather quickly, from what my senses tell me. Although my eyesight's blurry, I can see that this person has emerald colored eyes, medium long blonde hair in a straight style, wearing a female school uniform colored white and red.

"Miss Takara, we can't have too many people in here! Miss Koizumi's still frail from the long sleep." I hear the nurse say.

"Huh...? Takara...? Airi...? Ophelia...?" I ask in a frail tone, still trying to readjust to the fact I'm in reality.

"Karen, it's good to see you here in reality!" I recognize the voice as Ophelia's now.

"Ophelia...? Is that...you?" I ask weakly, little surprise how I was just recently 'forced' out of my comatose state.

"Yeah, it is, I'm glad to see you in reality again..." Ophelia says with a few sniffles, apparently glad that I'm finally back on Earth, in a matter of speaking.

"Where...am I?" I ask the four people around me, though I already have a suspicion considering the environment.

"You're in a hospital in Kyoto, about a tenth of the ten thousand players of that blasted Sword Art Online game were moved here at some point, truthfully, over a third of the nation's annual medical budget of the last three years have been focused here and the other hospitals holding SAO players.." Garrett grumbles a little angrily. I'm not surprised that my parents are angry at Argus over the fact Akihiko imprisoned ten thousand people, especially foreign visitors from overseas like the Uchimayas, Haruka's foster parents.

"Dad, I imagine that you and mom sued Argus over this?" I ask a tiny bit nervously. A tiny part of me is not really able to believe these two are my family, though it's just my life in Aincrad conflicting with reality somewhat.

"Not just us, dozens if not hundreds of families sued. The company actually went bankrupt two years ago, though we've kept the servers intact because all the Sword Art Online players were still trapped."

"What I don't entirely understand is why you were still trapped. The Aincrad players were freed two months ago" Clara asks me in a curious tone, missing a few pieces of the puzzle.

"I can explain that part" I state in a serious tone, this knowledge MUST be brought to light. "Sugou Nobuyuki of RECTO Progress imprisoned three hundred players from Aincrad in Alfheim Online including myself and experimented on them to control people's emotions, thoughts, and memory. He was apparently trying to gain the ability to enslave people's souls." I say in a mildly depressed tone, my thoughts going back to that lab I saw in Yggdrasil, where I heard myself, Katsuo, Sylvia, and the others in that lab. Hearing Rika, Keiko, Mamoru, Haruka, and the others was pretty scary, they were being experimented on without them possibly being aware of it. "_I wonder if Rika, Keiko, Mamoru, Haruka, and the others were out there in Alfheim. Even Yui said that the information was a bit vague._"

"Wonderful...As if Kayaba's imprisonment was bad enough, now we have a psychotic whack-job trying to manipulate the soul itself." Garrett retorts angrily, shaking his head in anger and disbelief.

"I don't think Sugou will be a problem. I dealt with him in Alfheim." I say with a small smile, since I saw Sugou get killed by XANA's Tarantulas back in Alfheim.

"Either way, Koizumi Designs did suffer quite some backlash from its involvement in Sword Art Online, and I can imagine we'll get even more from Alfheim...we're going to need to distance ourselves from Virtual Reality MMOs really soon. Thankfully, our reputation is not fully destroyed, we can still cleanse our involvement with these menaces" Garrett says, clearly angry about his involvement in Virtual Reality MMOs, not wanting to deal with them anymore apparently.

"I see...um...can anyone here get me a wheelchair or something...?" I say weakly, trying to get up.

"Miss Koizumi, please don't exert yourself right now! I'll go get something you can use." The nurse says compassionately and in worry.

The nurse leaves to go find...whatever she's getting for me to use.

"Karen, why do you want a wheelchair? You ought to take things slow." Clara says, calming down somewhat from her euphoria.

"Father...you said the SAO players were here, are the last three hundred here?" I ask slowly.

"Yeah...why?" Garrett asks curiously.

"I have some friends I want to see..." I say quietly, and when I I remember Ulrich, I begin crying again, we were forced to leave him behind again...just like Aincrad.

"Friends? I don't want to sound the mean sort, but weren't you withdrawn most of your school life here?" Garrett says with regret, not wanting to sound too mean.

"The friends I want to talk with were...friends I made during my three years in Aincrad" I say a little quietly.

"Karen, are you sure these people can be trusted? People are capable of wearing many masks..." Clara says worriedly, before I interrupt her out of anger.

"Mom! I can't believe you of all people would say something like that! You worked in the military, where you need to trust the people around you!" I say, angry that a former soldier would say something like this.

"Ms. Koizumi, Karen's right on this! Besides, I met them and her friends are very good people, they can be trusted" Ophelia says in mild anger.

"Miss Koizumi, I have some cybernetic leg braces, if you wait a moment, I'll apply them." The nurse states.

* * *

The nurse applies the pair of cybernetic braces to my legs, then helps me get out of the bed.

"I want to see Katsuo Viperia, Kana Shimuzu, Sylvia Miyagawa, and Asuna Yuuki, I trust they all reside in this hospital?" I ask the nurse seriously. "Actually, I just remembered, is Mamoru Nakasone, Haruka Uchimaya, Keiko Ayano, and Rika Shinozaki here too?"

"Yes, Katsuo Viperia, Kana Shimuzu, Sylvia Miyagawa, and Haruka Uchimaya are already awake according to the other nurses, with Mamoru Nakasone, Keiko Ayano, and Rika Shinozaki waking up as we speak, though Asuna Yuuki is still not waking up yet, however, do you wish to meet with them all in one of our larger rooms?" The nurse asks.

"Yes please...mother, father...I want some private time with them, Ophelia, you can come if you wish" I say seriously.

I notice the nurse approach a wall phone and calls someone. After a minute passes, the nurse hangs up

"The nurses will be bringing your friends to room A238. They should be there within five minutes."

"Thank you. Ophelia, let's get moving." I state solemnly, not wanting to face my parents right now.

"Sure...Mr. Koizumi, Mrs. Koizumi, I'm glad to see you again" Ophelia says with a bow, before she helps me walk out of the room, with me going at a slow pace because of how heavy these braces are and considering how I haven't truly walked in three years.

* * *

Ophelia and I depart the room leaving my parents shocked at the fact I was so insistent about this. I notice Kazuto walking nearby, seemingly looking for Asuna, and I guess that Kazuto was connected to Alfheim Online here in the hospital.

"Kazuto!" I say in surprise, it's been a long while since I saw his real life appearance.

"Who are you?" Kazuto asks us, as he's never seen her real appearance before, since my signature green hair from Aincrad was scanned from when I had it dyed.

"Ophelia Takara, pleased to meet you again Kazuto Kirigaya" Ophelia says with a bow.

"So this is your real life appearance Ophelia? Pleased to meet you for real." Kazuto says with a small smile. "I presume you must be Karen...wow do you look different." Kazuto says laughing slightly.

"Yeah, my green hair was dyed, which I used before I involved myself in this whole SAO thing, anyway, Kazuto, I presume you're here to see Asuna?" I ask casually, and a little weakly.

"Yeah...and are you okay? You look a little sick." Kazuto asks worriedly.

"Kazuto...I just woke up...remember that me, Katsuo, and the other three hundred players were comatose for three years straight now..." I say weakly. "Anyway...I'm meeting up with Katsuo and the others in a minute, why don't you come along with me?" I say calmly, coughing a little after this.

"Sure, but take care of yourself first, if you're feeling weak like you say, don't push it" Kazuto says in concern.

"Duly noted" I say calmly, even if I'm tired from the long rest, I still have my sharp instincts over the three year training in Aincrad.

"Actually, the nurse watching Karen said that Asuna Yuuki is still asleep, if you want to see her, she'll most likely still be in her room." Ophelia says calmly.

"I see, thank you, sorry Karen, Ophelia; but I made a promise to Asuna to see her before she wakes up" Kazuto says apologetically.

"Sure, I'll meet you later" I say calmly, walking to the room where Katsuo, and the others are.

* * *

While Ophelia and I walk around the hospital, trying to find room A238, I see a young teenage girl with very long purple hair stumble around and fall down. Ophelia rushes to the girl's side to help her up, since I can't exert my muscles much yet because of how recently I got out of my comatose state.

"Are you okay?" Ophelia asks worriedly.

"Urk...yeah...somewhat...I'm trying to get used to walking again..."

I recognize the voice now "Haruka, good to see you." I say, slowly walking toward the pair.

"Huh...?" Haruka asks in mild confusion, as she's helped up by Ophelia. "Oh! Karen, I'm glad to see you again...What date is it actually?" Haruka asks either me or Ophelia.

"It's August fourth." Ophelia states calmly, as I don't have the information myself.

"Two more months of lost time, wonderful. I can't even remember what happened since I left Aincrad."

"We'll explain when we get to the others. I hear that all of the Aincrad players that were imprisoned in Alfheim are here. Rika, Keiko, Mamoru, and everyone else should still be here, I'm actually on my way to reunite Senryaku." I say calmly, with a tiny laugh at the end.

"Mind if I join you? I'm going to be stumbling about otherwise" Haruka says with a small embarrassed laugh. I notice how she doesn't have cybernetic leg braces on like me, so I guess that's why she's stumbling around so much.

"I don't mind Haruka; Ophelia, you're going to need to support her though. I think I can manage if I just walk slowly."

"Okay." Ophelia says nonchalantly, lending a shoulder for Haruka to lean on as we walk to the room.

"Actually, I want to ask, why were you here in the first place Ophelia?" I ask curiously, since Ophelia entered my hospital room a little too fast.

"I've been feeling a little ill for a month now, so I was in this hospital for treatment. Don't worry though, it's nothing too dangerous, I was just running a bad fever." Ophelia says calmly, not wanting to worry me apparently.

"You can't expect me to not worry Ophelia. You should've been resting, not fighting in Alfheim." I say in concern, even though it's a virtual reality game, Ophelia was focusing herself on Alfheim and not resting.

"Ophelia, although the memory was a little vague, do you remember when we worked together in the beta? I think you worked with us on floor 3. My game name was Mikuya" Haruka says calmly, looking up toward Ophelia somewhat.

"Oh, good to see you again. You certainly seem different Haruka. I won't talk about appearance since you had a custom avatar, but your personality seems different."

"Spending three years in a prison where death seems absolute does change you. I had to temper my personality in order to survive that death trap." Haruka says solemnly, remembering how so many people lost their lives to that 'game'.

"Don't remind me...I'm just glad I'm out of that freaking hell zone. Sure Aincrad was nice and all, but it was considered the worst part of my life aside from meeting you all" I say with a frown, recalling all the deaths I've seen.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [18:30] August 4th 2025

Ophelia, Haruka, and I walk into room A238 where Katsuo and the others are. I can easily tell they look quite different because of the fact all of their hair being much longer than what I saw in Aincrad, though I can recognize them instantly because of their similar appearances from their time in Sword Art Online. I highly doubt that Katsuo, Sylvia, and Kana will recognize me because of the fact that the green hair they all saw me with is back to its natural amber color.

"Oh, hey Haruka. Who are these two?" Katsuo says casually to Haruka, with a curious tone to me and Ophelia.

"Hey Katsuo, Sylvia, Kana; good to see you again." I say with a smile, I'm surprised that these guys are even able to pull off standing like this, my legs are still mildly paralyzed from the three year sleep.

"Oh, Karen; sorry about that. I was just too used to your green hair...is this color your true color?" Katsuo asks a little awkwardly, recognizing me now since I talked to him.

"Yeah, I dyed my hair before Sword Art Online, and the NerveGear took the green hair as the template for Solaris."

"Good to see you again Karen" I recognize that friendly voice from Kana Shimuzu, who went by Krisaga in Alfheim.

"Likewise. I suspect you all are feeling weak from being in reality for the first time in three years, right?" I ask the group seriously.

"A little..." I recognize this quiet voice as Sylvia, or Minatoya from Alfheim.

"I see, well, aside from Ulrich, our entire family's here in reality." I say calmly.

"You're not quite right Karen" I hear a mystery voice chuckle a few times.

"Huh? Who said that?" Katsuo and I ask in shock.

* * *

The four of us: Katsuo, Sylvia, Kana, and myself look around the room relatively quickly when we see someone on a computer monitor in the room, with Haruka laying down on a chair to keep herself from falling again and Ophelia's staying nearby to help just in case she falls, when the four of us approach that monitor, we find that the person on the monitor is Ulrich Stern, one of our closest companions for the last three years.

"Ulrich? Is that you?" I ask in surprise, not really able to believe it, even though we were in Alfheim not too long ago.

"Yeah, Cardinal has given me limited access to administrator privileges, so I can freely access any computer monitor at will, so for the time being, I can meet with you in reality at any time this way." Ulrich says optimistically, his old personality seemingly returned.

"How did you know we were in this room specifically?" Kana asks curiously.

"I...didn't...back when I first arrived, you told me that the servers were all Japan-based, so that made things a little easier for me to find you. When I saw you all log out, I knew that only hospitals would be able to keep you all alive for three years, so I used the administrator privileges to scan for large power usage, which resulted in around three to five dozen results, so I merely went through them all at three second intervals until I found you all." Ulrich says sheepishly.

"Well...it's better than nothing, but all five of us are together in reality, so to speak" I say optimistically, but coughing a little as well. I think I'm getting too excited from us being reunited for real.

"Karen, you need to slow down, take it easy if you're still weak!" Kana says worriedly.

"Yeah...sorry everyone..." I say still coughing, I guess I'm not as fit as I thought.

"Karen, take a few deep breaths, before you cough yourself to death..." Katsuo says seriously.

I take a few breaths to try calming my nerves, which I'm successfully able to so, and I do feel better and less stressed out.

"Did that help?" Katsuo asks casually, with him being concerned for my well-being. I can't blame him considering how long we've been friends.

"Yeah...it did...I guess..." I say, though I'm uncertain of myself at the moment.

"Karen, now that we're finally back in reality...what will we do with our lives? It'll be a tiny bit awkward for us to return to normal schools after missing three years of it." Katsuo asks a little awkwardly.

"I have no clue to be honest. I'd want to resume school immediately, but there's no way I'd be able to do well in school if I were to return to the normal curriculum. After missing three years, none of us would be able to handle a normal school curriculum." I say a little sadly.

"How troublesome is the education in this world?" Ulrich asks curiously, having never experienced education here in Japan, since he told us he lived in Europe.

"Oh yeah...you don't know how education works in this world, and Japan alone..." I say in mild surprise. "Ignoring the whole...dimension thing, we attend school six days a week and our school year starts in April, we have class until July for summer vacation, we return in early September for second term until the end of December, our final term starts early January and ends late March." I continue calmly.

"Wow, you guys are insane about your education. How are you able to keep your sanity?" Ulrich says in shock and mild laughing following.

"It's something you deal with over time, if you do decide to attend school with us all, you'll have to adapt quickly." I say with a small laugh.

"Dang..." Ulrich says in surprise.

"Haha, Ulrich, do you still want to come to our world?" I say laughingly.

"You're one sadistic girl Karen..." Ulrich says nervously. "But I'd rather live in actual reality than live in virtual reality forever after watching you all pass on" Ulrich continues.

"Haha, Ulrich, I figured you'd say something like that" Katsuo says, laughing a little bit following.

"I don't exactly know what's going on, but I think I can help you exist in this world Ulrich" Ophelia says calmly, approaching us and speaking up for the first time since arriving in this room.

"Eh? Who are you?" Katsuo asks, finally noticing Ophelia's presence in the room.

"Ophelia Takara, pleased to meet you all again" Ophelia says with a bow.

"Oh, sorry we left you out Ophelia, we just didn't know what you looked like in real life" Sylvia says apologetically.

"It's no problem, I'm not offended" Ophelia says calmly.

"Ophelia, you said you could help? How exactly could you?" I ask curiously, I don't know how she could help in this way. Then again, it has been three years and people can change.

"Well, I'm no master, but I do have experience creating robotic mechs from two and a half years of tinkering, I could try making a mech for you Ulrich" Ophelia says happily.

"How convenient, XANA and Cardinal are currently in the process of crafting the blueprints for a mech for me to use in real life. With all three of us working together, we should have it finished within a couple of days, but the toughest part is construction" Ulrich says calmly.

"Don't worry about it, forward the blueprints to me when you finish and I'll start work immediately." Ophelia says with pride.

"Ophelia, you seem way too eager about this" Sylvia states nervously, she was never good with overeagerness.

"I've become a giant mecha fan over the last couple of years, if I get the chance to build robots, I'll jump at the opportunity to do so!" Ophelia says, with her being very psyched.

"Wow...this is a side of you I never expected Ophelia" I say in shock, surprised at how different my childhood friends are. Kazuma apparently has acclimatized rather decently at political work, Ophelia has become a robotic engineer, and Airi has remarkable skill in strategies. They never had these qualities before I played Sword Art Online, I really wish I could've seen them grow over the last three years.

* * *

At this point, Mamoru, Keiko, and a brunette with a small white hairpin in her hair, whom I notice is Rika's signature accessory, walk in the room.

"Good to see all of you" I say with a smile, recognizing their appearances rather easily, with it being a tiny bit tough for me to notice in Rika's case.

"Good to see you again Karen-chan" Keiko says happily, I imagine she'd want to run toward me, but I imagine that even walking is a challenge. Though she does walk a little bit toward me.

"I'm glad to see you too Keiko-chan." I say, walking toward her a little slowly, and lightly embrace her. After Kirito and I saved her back in the Forest of Wandering during one of our breaks during the clearers, she has seen me as a bit of a sister, heaven knows why. Why do they see ME as a maternal figure for god's sake...?

"I gotta say, it's really good being back in reality. The only thing that bites is how difficult it is to walk..." Rika says in her usual 'hold nothing back' tone.

"Agreed, but we're finally back. I guess a majority of you are around seventeen, if so, I'm the oldest at twenty two. I was eighteen when I started playing Sword Art Online." Mamoru says with a small smile. "Haruka, you doing okay?" He continues in concern, not that I can blame him since Haruka's foster parents entrusted her to Mamoru back in the beginning.

"I'm okay Mamoru, I'm a little woozy from my awakening, but...what happened while we were unconscious the last two months?" Haruka says in a quiet tone, and asks the question in no one in particular, not knowing much of the situation.

"Two months?! I thought we left Aincrad back in June!" Rika asks in utter shock, with Keiko and Mamoru having the same expression.

"Let me explain...Two months ago, Sugou Nobuyuki imprisoned a good number of us and performed experiments to try manipulating our souls. We were just freed not too long ago." Katsuo states casually.

"We owe Cardinal and XANA a lot for their help" Sylvia says with a small laugh.

"XANA?! Wait...how did that evil AI help?!" Rika asks in a freaked out tone, not that I can blame her, since she did get pinned down and attacked by three of XANA's Krabs back in Aincrad.

"Believe it or not, XANA only wanted to kill Sugou. He actually helped us escape when we got captured by Sugou's administrators. A bunch of his Tarantulas and Cardinal's Wyverns aided us in regrouping with Karen, Ulrich, Asuna, and Kirito." Kana says calmly, mildly bewildered by Rika's sudden outburst.

"...Wow...but if XANA only wanted to kill this Sugou, why did it attack us so fiercely back in Aincrad?" Mamoru asks curiously.

"XANA actually told me that Sugou was the one who brought the two of us to this dimension in the first place. He was trying to make the both of us kill Kayaba. However, as time went on, XANA freed himself from the programming that Sugou made and desired vengeance against Sugou for said programming. XANA REALLY did not like Sugou changing his programming." Ulrich says casually.

"So, you two were brought here to kill Kayaba?" Mamoru asks, wanting to make sure he has all the details right.

"Essentially." Ulrich states bluntly

"Sugou must've hated Kayaba enough to bring in two influences utterly unknown to him to kill Kayaba." Rika says in mild surprise.

* * *

At this point, the final people of our group: Kazuto and Asuna enter the room at a slow speed, with Kazuto helping Asuna walk, with her not having the cybernetic braces like Haruka. I notice that Ophelia and Mamoru walked over to Haruka and I presume they won't be involving themselves in the conversation between us, Kazuto, and Asuna.

"Asuna-san, Kazuto, good to see you again" Rika says with a smile, walking toward the duo.

"Liz? I'm glad to see you, it's been a long time" Asuna says happily, with Liz being one of her closest female friends.

"Kazuto-san, I'm glad to see you as well." Keiko says happily to the black haired teen.

"Silica, I'm glad too. Or rather, Keiko-chan." Kazuto says with a smile.

"Kazuto, Asuna, Rika, Keiko, considering how we haven't 'met' in reality, I think we should introduce ourselves again. My name's Karen Koizumi" I say with a small sarcastic laugh, with a small amount of logical reasoning behind it; Out of all of us, the only people who knew each other in real life before now was Katsuo, Kana, Keiko, Haruka, and Mamoru. "Let me formally introduce Katsuo Viperia, Kana Shimuzu, and Sylvia Miyagawa." I say with a laugh.

"Hehe, I suppose this is the first time we've met in real life, so I can let it slide" Asuna says laughing lightly.

"Heh, look at you Asuna, you've been comatose as long as the rest of us, and you still look like an angel, talk about unfair treatment." Katsuo says sarcastically.

"Are you jealous Katsuo?" Kana asks with her laughing after saying it.

* * *

We all begin laughing our butts off because of this and it helps relieve the tense atmosphere in this room a little. Ophelia walked over to Haruka was and helped bring her to where we all are. However, around now, I notice a teenage girl with bronze red colored hair and gold eyes wearing a school uniform not native to the Kyoto prefecture, I guess its from where she went to school before, runs into the room.

"Sylvia, you're finally awake! Thank goodness!" The girl says with tears in her eyes, quickly running toward Sylvia and embraces her.

"Madoka...it's been such a long time...I'm so sorry I was gone so long..." Sylvia says quietly, lightly crying on her younger sister's arms.

"Is this your sister Sylvia?" Katsuo asks curiously.

"Who are you people?" Madoka asks shrinking somewhat, having just noticed us all.

"Madoka, these are my friends, say hello to Katsuo Viperia, Karen Koizumi, Kana Shimuzu, Kazuto Kirigaya, Asuna Yuuki, Ophelia Takara, Haruka Uchimaya and Ulrich Stern...who's still in the game: Alfheim Online" Sylvia says with a calm tone, still crying slightly.

However, even with the introductions, Madoka is hiding behind Sylvia slightly, if I were to guess, she's not used to meeting new people.

"Madoka, you don't need to be afraid of us, we're not going to harm you" I say calmly, though she only backs up even more.

"Madoka, I know I've left you alone the last three years, but...know these guys can be trusted. I swear" Sylvia says in a quiet tone, trying to encourage Madoka. "Madoka, how is Tsubasa faring? And I heard you dropped out of school to pay for extra expenses, listen, I really do want you to do what it takes to get back in school." She asks worriedly, with her being concerned at the rest. I can imagine that suddenly knowing that your younger sister dropped out of school to work is not something she can take easily.

"He's been staying in a different hospital here in Kyoto, his condition has gotten worse out of worry for you. You should go visit as soon as possible so he won't need to worry, and Nee-chan...after everything I've been through, I actually kind of like work more than school, my current employer says I have a lot of potential..._even though I did have to lie about my age._" Madoka says quietly, muttering the last part quietly.

"So Tsubasa is in worse shape than before...no..." Sylvia says in dismay.

"Nee-chan, his doctors suspect he'll start getting better once he sees you, he's been worried sick that you'd never return." Madoka says, trying to cheer up Sylvia a little. These two remind me of a certain pair of sisters from an anime I saw a long time ago...I just can't seem to remember the name of it, although Sylvia can't apply much to that older sister because that older sister character is ditzy and spaces out rather often, but Madoka reminds me a lot of the younger sister, who is more responsible than the older sister. I recall that the younger sister's name was one character short of being the same as her older sister.

"Sylvia, I think I could try to help in that regard. With the administrator privileges I was given, I think I can pass a message to his location and try to set up some sort of audio and video connection between there and here." Ulrich says quietly.

"Please do..." Sylvia says very quietly, with Ulrich barely hearing her.

"Give me a minute, I'll leave a small presence of myself here to maintain this front while I search for the hospital where this...Tsubasa is"

* * *

After a couple of minutes pass, we see the computer open two different displays, one of Ulrich in Alfheim Online, and the other of a different hospital room, with a young teenager, with him being a near likeness of Sylvia, resting in a bed.

"That's him alright...where is he?" Sylvia asks in a pushy tone.

"He's in a different hospital in Kyoto, I can't find out more than that... I can't access any files since they're all on encrypted channels, I was lucky I was able to get this video feed, I can't access audio sadly." Ulrich says with a groan.

"The name of the hospital where Tsubasa is called Sukiyaki; he's been there since we moved here." Madoka says in a quiet tone.

"I'll have to go see him as soon as possible" Sylvia says, with her voice barely being heard.

"Nee-chan, look, I know what I said, but take it easy please. Pushing yourself will not help Tsubasa recover" Madoka says rather seriously.

"Madoka, as your older sister, I need to do what is best for you both" Sylvia says in a serious tone.

"Madoka. I want to ask, how did you pull off this off? Getting a job and finding a place to live?" I ask curiously, by mere sight, I think Sylvia told me that her younger sister is three years younger than her, and since Sylvia is currently seventeen, I have to guess that Madoka's only fourteen or so. How in the world did she pull off these things?

"...I had to lie a lot. I passed myself off as an adult who's relatively short, and I got jobs as a cashier at a small restaurant and an accountant for a company named Koizumi Designs. That second job helped pay a lot of the expenses I was burdened with."

"You work for my parent's company? I could easily tell them of this you know" I say solemnly. My parents could be in serious trouble for hiring someone underage.

"Your parents run the company? Oh no...P-Please don't tell them, I need this job!" Madoka pleads desperately.

"Madoka, you must know that Japan frowns on this sort of thing. You could've easily had my parents in deep trouble from you lying." I say very angrily, my parents spent years building up that company. If they lose the company they devoted their life, blood, and sweat to all because of a single girl, I highly doubt they'd be in a happy mood.

"Karen, let me take her place. I'm old enough to hold a job. I'd have no problems handling a job if it means she won't be in trouble" Sylvia says, wanting to keep her sister from getting in trouble.

I merely sigh and say "Look, I'll see what I can do but...I can't work miracles. I'll see if I can persuade my parents to find a job for you Sylvia. Just know that they'll need to lay off Madoka and call her other employer to do the same. I won't criticize her, but her lying is making the situation tough for me to handle"

"...Gomenasai...I know I shouldn't have done this, but onee-chan did odd jobs to help make ends meet for us three. When she was trapped, I had to take up real work to handle her being gone, especially when Tsubasa was hospitalized. I'm so sorry..." Madoka says looking down to the ground in a crestfallen tone.

Katsuo slowly walks toward her and puts his hand on her right shoulder "Don't worry about it. Desperate times calls for desperate measures, but you really ought to refocus on education. Considering how you had to leave school because of Sword Art Online, you may be given an opportunity to go to where we may end up. There's next to no way any SAO player can handle a normal curriculum considering how long we've been gone."

"Hmm...If onee-chan trusts you...I'll try to do the same..."

"Right, I highly doubt that we'd be forced into a regular curriculum considering our three year absence. If I'm right, I bet a special school will be set up for us all." Kana says quietly.

"Either way, there's going to be a lot of things we missed over the last three years. We'll need a lot of luck to handle the re-education. And don't forget physical therapy, we'll need quite a bit after this" I say with a light sigh, and a few coughs as well. God knows we'll need the both of these things.

"Yeah..." The group says in unison.

* * *

Please read and review. I want to know what you all think of me using first person for the first time in a full story.


	2. Reacclimatization

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works._

This is...unbelievable...after three years, the final three hundred players from Aincrad are finally free from these virtual reality prisons! I can finally enjoy the wonders of real life. But after nearly four years, and experiencing the wonders of VRMMORPGs, will our lives ever be normal again?

I need to thank ailaxolotl for beta reading this chapter. Thank you very much :)

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [8:30] April 5th 2026

Ever since we were freed back in August, we've all been undergoing physical rehabilitation and mental & psychological evaluations to ascertain how much training we'll need to adapt for our lost three years in reality, and psychological meetings to deal with the death we've seen.

Katsuo and I spent five months undergoing physical rehabilitation and an two additional months of mental and educational examinations to fill us in on what had occurred over the three years we spent 'asleep'. Kana and Sylvia spent six months with physical training and a month of mental and educational examination, as they weren't very athletic before SAO and needed more time to recover. Aside from minor updates, the only one in our group that needed extensive educational reform was our newest friend in reality: Ulrich Stern, who now officially goes by the name Hikaru Murai, to blend in with society better.

With the assistance of myself, Kazuto and a few other associates of my Senryaku unit, Hikaru was able to get a realistic looking birth certificate, with Kazuto's computer skills really helping and we made a little white lie saying that Hikaru was another associate of the Uchimaya family like Mamoru Nakasone, stating he was born in France but was orphaned at a very young age and was living with a relative until a few years ago, coming to Japan and was somehow able to get in Sword Art Online during the official launch.

His appearance has actually significantly changed from his time in Alfheim and Aincrad after his soul merged with the mech body, his scruffy brown hair changing to straight Aero colored hair, and emerald eyes. He often wears a sky blue colored shirt with dark silver colored pants when he's not in school. I find it fitting that his new identity is now fully different, in both name and appearance, but I digress.

The reason why Hikaru needed the instruction was his utter lack of knowledge about the Japanese language and our dimension's differences with his own; truthfully, the only way we were able to even talk with him until a month ago was through MMOs. His Japanese is still laughably flawed, but at least it's at a state where we can make small talk in reality.

We've begun our school year at a special school specifically for former Sword Art Online players, as most of them are lacking a high school education. We learned when we started that the teenagers of SAO would need to attend all four years of the school, even if we're seventeen, so most of us will be in our early twenties when we graduate. School was already in session for about a week when the five of us joined in, so we didn't miss much.

We also managed to get the school principal to accept Madoka and Tsubasa in the school considering that their lives were heavily affected by Sword Art Online just like the players trapped inside, though Kazuto and Mamoru had to take advantage of quite a few loopholes to get them in the school. Alongside my party: Senryaku and our associates, all of the teenagers and children in Sword Art Online are attending this school, with Mamoru taking a job somewhere with none of us having seen him since a week passed after we woke up in the hospital back in August.

* * *

"Okay everyone, we have five new students joining our school today, whom you may recognize from Sword Art Online. Care to give introductions?" Our teacher states in a calm tone, with Katsuo going first, to our relief.

"My name is Katsuo Viperia, pleased to meet you, I went by Masaru back in Sword Art Online." Katsuo says with a polite bow.

"I'm Kana Shimuzu, pleased to meet you, I went by Amaterasu in Aincrad." Kana says, keeping the bow thing going.

"My name is Sylvia Miyagawa...pleased to meet you, I went by Elena..." Sylvia says nervously, though I hardly understand why; after all, we've gone three years through life and death with these people.

"I'm Karen Koizumi, pleased to meet you, I went by Solaris back in Aincrad." I say relatively calmly.

"My name is Hikaru Murai, I used to go by Ulrich Stern, I'm pleased to meet you all again" Hikaru says slowly, as he's trying to recall which word goes where, since his knowledge of our language is still a little flawed.

Katsuo, Kana, and I look around the classroom, and we recognize many familiar faces around the classroom, particularly Kazuto Kirigaya, Asuna Yuuki, and Rika Shinozaki, all of whom are smiling at us, apparently glad that we're in their class. Meanwhile, I notice Sylvia looking away somewhat, she never was really good with crowds, and I guess that Hikaru's mildly daunted from the fact he's actually living in our dimension for real now since he's doing the same thing.

I remember it like it was yesterday when Ulrich was able to successfully enter our world and live with us. With the two Artificial Intelligences: XANA and Cardinal working together, and Ulrich changing the blueprints slightly to benefit him more, Kazuto and I were able to help Ophelia create an advanced bio-mechanical mech body according to the blueprints and surprisingly finished it in under two months time. Originally, it was just a simple robot body, but when Ulrich uploaded his consciousness into the mech, it somehow drastically transformed that limited mech body into a true human body, much to all of our surprise. Ulrich no longer inhabits a robot body, but a true human body.

Since Ulrich doesn't have a proper home in this world, he's been staying with my family ever since we escaped Alfheim Online. He gets along surprisingly well with my father; they're both very fond of kendo and the like, and my mother finds him decent enough, to my relief.

Aside from that, our lives at this school are rather uneventful considering our previous lives in the combat infested Aincrad and Alfheim, and I'm thankful that the Japanese government is placing massive resources in front of us to bring us back into the fold in terms of education, jobs, and more. No wonder Japan is considered the absolute best nation in the world. Okay...that last one was a bit of a joke, but not about what's being done to help all of us. When we're not busy with our school work, we're often in Alfheim Online or hanging out at the Dicey Cafe in reality. After about a month passes of school, while we're in the middle of our lunch break in the school cafeteria, this happens during our discussion between my group of friends.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [12:00] May 5th 2026

"Karen, there's a new tournament coming up in Alfheim Online named Ragnarok. Do you want to join in?" Hikaru asks me.

"You guys do know that we should be focusing on our school work, right?" I say seriously.

"Karen, do you know how rare these tournaments are? Missing one is unthinkable!" Katsuo says seriously, to my surprise.

"He has a point on that one Karen, you really should participate. We haven't seen you online in months, this can be a good chance for you to exert the challenge and thrill you lived with in Aincrad. Besides, you're the smartest student in our entire school, you should be able to handle one lower grade." Kana says calmly, laughing a little.

"Mataku...I really need to get some new friends that aren't obsessed with MMOs!" I say with a sigh.

"Say that as much as you like, but admit it; you'd go stir-crazy without us" Sylvia says laughingly.

"I hate you all..." I say with a sigh. I don't truly mean it, but these guys drive me mad sometimes. "...Fine, but I have a condition if you want me to join." I say seriously. I intend to get some sort of benefit from this.

"What's your condition?" Katsuo asks semi-nervously, catching on to what I have in mind.

"Know this, I'm going to be very strict with our studying from here on. I'm going to be relentless until you all maintain a strong B average at least!" I say proudly. If they want me to participate in this tournament, I'm going to make sure they pass school with very good grades.

"Oh damn...I suspected that..." Hikaru says nervously.

"If you want me to participate, that's my condition" I say proudly, crossing my arms to give off a serious aura.

Katsuo sighs. "Fine."

"I'd say this is just a small price to pay to have Karen with us" Kana says with a small nervous laugh.

"What are the specifics of this tournament, anyway?" I ask curiously.

"This tournament allows for members of different races to work together, and the winning team members become champions of Alfheim. There's a limit of sixteen teams for this tournament, with two people being required to form a team. Katsuo and I have formed a team. Kazuto, Asuna, Kazuma, and Ophelia have as well. But the max number of players allowed for each team is five people; with three warriors, one equipment manager, and a single strategist. We couldn't have a better team here; actually, we have all the slots filled except for strategist. So..." Sylvia says calmly, and quietly at the end.

"So, you want me to be your team's strategist? What's the team name?" I ask calmly.

"We named our team Knights of the Blood Oath, but the system shortened it to a logo: Team Knights and the two teams we're scared of the most right now are teams Unity and Wolf." Kana says casually, and slowly when mentioning the other two teams.

"Who's in those teams? And why did you guys name the team _that_ of all things?" I ask curiously, leaning forward slightly when Kana mentioned the teams these guys are scared of. Considering everything we've been through in Aincrad, it should take an army of rhinos to scare them...which we have done once or twice in Aincrad, well not literal rhinos but lookalikes.

"Kazuma, Airi, Ophelia, a Salamander player named Horizon and an Imp player named Zekken form Team Unity, while Kazuto, Asuna, Klein, Keiko, and Rika are Team Wolf. We chose our name at random, but it's fitting considering our long-time association with the guild back in Sword Art Online, and the fact we do have a sort of blood oath between us five," Sylvia says worriedly at the start, but laughs slightly at the end. I see Katsuo growl inaudibly when Sylvia mentioned Horizon, and both he and Hikaru shiver at the mention of Zekken.

"Now I see why you're worried, those guys are crazy strong, but I'm curious...what role is Keiko in that team? And...who's Zekken?" I ask worriedly.

"Keiko is Wolf's strategist believe it or not." Katsuo says calmly, taking a small bite of his lunch. "She's surprisingly quick-witted and has already pulled off some victories as strategist during informal practice matches." He continues, in a mildly proud tone, since Keiko was a member of Senryaku back in Aincrad, with her joining after the Laughing Coffin crusade, but I can see a mild twinge when he begins talking again "Zekken is an Imp dual blade wielder. Her reaction time is remarkably fast, she has an eleven hit Original Sword Skill, and she was able to take down Kazuto easily!" Katsuo says worriedly, having a mild freak out here.

"My god...wait, did Kazuto use one blade, or two?" I ask nervously. If this Zekken was able to defeat Kazuto while he used dual blades, his strongest combat style, that's cause for concern.

"One blade" Sylvia says a little quietly, I think she's trying to calm me down somewhat.

"I see...well, that's a load off my chest. If Zekken somehow defeated Kazuto when he used dual blades, that would've given _me_ a heart attack..." I say, feeling a little freaked out. "Do you have any specifics on Team Unity's formation?" I ask, calming down a little.

"Yeah, Kazuma, Zekken, and Horizon are the fighters for Unity, Ophelia is the equipment manager, and Airi's the strategist." Hikaru says in a nonchalant tone, he never really was the sort to show any fear.

"Damn, Airi's my true rival when it comes to strategy. If we have to face Unity, that could easily become our toughest battle in this entire tournament" I say worriedly. The fact Airi's the strategist is bad enough, but with such powerful people in their ranks, they could easily become an unstoppable juggernaut. It's even more worrying that Unity seems to made up of powerful warriors. I just pray our long friendship and my skill as strategist pulls through if we face Unity.

* * *

As we continue talking, Kazuto, Asuna, Rika, and Keiko approach us.

"Hey guys, you mind if we sit here?" Keiko asks us cutely.

"Not at all" Sylvia says calmly.

We're making room for the four to sit at our table when Kazuto brings up something I figured he wouldn't be able to keep quiet about.

"Have you all heard of the new Alfheim tournament coming up?" Kazuto asks.

"Yeah, we already have a team of us five, we're calling ourselves Knights of the Blood Oath." Katsuo says calmly.

"How fitting! Hehe, anyway, have you guys heard of the team Kazuma and the others are in?" Asuna says, lightly laughing at the start, but growing serious at the mention of Team Unity.

"Yeah, Zekken is in Team Unity, and...after that girl annihilated both of us, I'm actually scared to face her again" Katsuo says worriedly, with Hikaru nodding in fear.

"Wait, you both fought her as well, and...lost?" Kazuto asks in shock.

"Yeah...she's very powerful. I tried using dual blades, but that only made things worse for me. She was using one sword, but when I drew my second, she quickly followed suite and defeated me in under twenty seconds," Hikaru says in fear. "I even used my eight hit OSS: Silent Crane, but she just countered me with hers" Hikaru continues nervously.

I remember the OSS-Original Sword Skill-feature that was implemented in a recent Alfheim Online patch. It allows players to create their very own Sword Skill. So far, I only know of a little over six people that have actually managed to create an OSS because of its crazy insane difficulty. Truthfully...it'd be easier to fight Blade Dancer, The Skull Reaper, and Geocrawler _together_ than to create an OSS. Despite that, Hikaru, Kirito, Asuna, Katsuo, Eugene, Sylvia, and myself are the only people who have managed to actually make one of them. Katsuo made the skill he used against Eugene back in Fellyre Shire into an official OSS, a skill named Fusion Lance.

"How did Kazuma manage to find that monster? One that can trounce former SAO players so damn easily..." Katsuo says in mild anger, but it's being used to cover fear.

"Is it possible Zekken was in SAO? That's one of the only reasons I can think of for how she beat you all" Sylvia says quietly.

"It's unlikely; I fought Zekken, and I can confidently say that if Zekken was in SAO, she would've gotten the dual blades unique skill instead of me" Kazuto says quietly.

"I remember hearing that you needed the reaction speed of a cheetah to get Dual Blades. If Zekken is faster that Kirito-kun...that's frightening" Asuna says in mild fear.

* * *

While Katsuo, Sylvia, Kazuto, Asuna, and Hikaru were talking about Zekken on the side of the table near the window, Rika, Keiko, Kana, and I were on the other side of the table talking about team arrangements. We might become enemies in the tournament, but we're still friends in reality, where it truly counts.

"Keiko, Rika, I heard you two are working in the back ranks for Team Wolf" I say calmly to the duo, hoping to engage the subject tactfully.

"Yeah, I'm working as equipment manager, while Keiko here is the strategist. If I were to make a guess; Karen, you're the strategist, and Kana's the equipment manager?" Rika asks.

"Yeah" Kana and I say in unison.

"You guys will be a force to be reckoned with, with the famous Solaris as your strategist!" Rika says laughing. I know she's serious about it, but I doubt it'll be easy.

"Kazuto, Asuna, you've been on Alfheim Online more often than us lately; has XANA been causing any trouble?" I ask in their direction worriedly.

"Not really. He's been passive ever since we fulfilled his request. His monsters are no longer attacking players unfairly and they've actually been helpful for the players to train their aerial acrobatic ability." Kazuto says calmly.

* * *

According to the press, Sugou Nobuyuki was reported dead of unknown causes a few hours after XANA went through with his desire to kill Sugou. The public's totally unaware of the hidden truth, except for my friends and me who cleared Yggdrasil back then. After we revealed that the Grand Quest was a sham and the experiments that were being run on the trapped players from Sword Art Online, many players were threatening to sue RECTO Progress for outright deception and illegal experimentation, so they quickly offered all the players the reward of unlimited flight to placate their anger over the Grand Quest deception. However, complaints kept popping up about the experimentation and RECTO finally sold the game to a new company called Ymir. Composed of Alfheim and former Sword Art Online players, Ymir was given access to the 'World Seed' program, which Kayaba created and gave to Kazuto before vanishing. The World Seed is a compressed file with a Cardinal program which allows anyone to create their own Virtual Reality MMO at very low cost, which is being used to create Virtual Realities for just about anything: education, military, news, games, and so on. With Alfheim as it's heart, The World Seed's has developed into a massive network, with each Cardinal governing their own unique world. XANA is connected to the network to provide its massive processing power, but is otherwise keeping itself relatively inert save for Alfheim Online. I guess XANA just likes Alfheim the most. That, or XANA needs to stay in a single location to keep its processes stable.

* * *

"Karen, you okay?" I hear Hikaru say worriedly, noting my silence.

"Huh? Oh...I'm okay, just...reflecting on the past" I say quietly.

"I suppose things have been very hectic the last four years" Kazuto says quietly, with all of us easily nodding in approval. If it wasn't for SAO, none of us may have ever met.

"We should get going, we have class in ten minutes." Asuna says seriously.

"Ah, right, do you all want to meet up in Orion Castle in Alfheim after school?" I ask casually.

"Sure, see you there Karen!" Keiko says happily, with the others nodding as well.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [15:30] May 5th 2026

Logging back into Alfheim Online with our avatars for the first time since February 4th, I find myself outside my estate in this world: Orion Castle, near the outskirts of Sylvain. My friends from reality are quickly logging in and meeting up with me, with Katsuo, Hikaru, Kana, and Sylvia logging in this area as well. I can see Kazuto, Asuna, Keiko, Rika, and Klein flying towards us and landing after a minute passes.

These five respectively take the form of a male Spriggan wearing primarily onyx colored clothing, a female Undine with royal blue as the avatar's primary color, a female Cait Sith with orange colored wings, wearing a dark blue robe similar with orange-gold trims, a light blue feathery dragon following her closely, a female Leprechaun with metallic wings, wearing red and white clothing, and a male Salamander donned in red.

"Well well well, so Team Wolf has come here, I presume you want to fight" I say egotistically and jokingly. Being back in Alfheim for the first time since February, I had to let that out.

"Knock it off Karen" Kazuto says seriously, with a small frown toward me.

"I was joking, I needed a little laugh!" I say seriously, with an unnoticeable frown.

"Papa, I can detect five players flying this way. They're Cait Sith, Undine, Spriggan, Imp, and Salamander." Yui says, appearing out of Kazuto's coat pocket.

* * *

I recognize three of them: Izanagi, Okamoto, and Yūgana (or otherwise: Kazuma, Airi, and Ophelia) are flying toward us along with the other two. I can see Katsuo, Kazuto, and Hikaru slightly shiver upon seeing a girl with purple hair. I'm guessing that this is the Zekken who defeated them so easily. The five of them touch down to ground and the leader of the group, Kazuma, walks forward.

"Hello there everyone" Kazuma says calmly.

"Greetings Izanagi" I say calmly. "Why are you here?"

"I came to show you all my team in this tournament. I'd like to introduce my warriors: Horizon, Zekken, and myself; my strategist Okamoto, and my equipment manager, Yūgana." Kazuma says proudly.

"Pleased to meet you everyone, my name is Zekken, my epithet is Absolute Sword" Zekken says calmly, and happily as well. "You must be Solaris, I've heard so much about you. I want to challenge you to a friendly duel" Zekken says...surprisingly happily.

"You...want to challenge me?" I ask in surprise.

"Yep, so will you?" Zekken's behavior reminds me of that of a little girl, asking for an allowance. It's difficult for me to reject her.

"Well, I've been dying to test a new OSS I developed in my free time." I muse.

Zekken and I start the duel with her dual blades drawn, which gets me nervous; but I decide to try evening the playing field by drawing my ace in the hole. I've recently begun training using two spears at once; though it's still very difficult for me to even keep a stable stance going, let alone fight, I've been undergoing extensive training with Hikaru, Kazuto, and Katsuo in this regard, so hopefully I can hold out against this powerful fighter.

"So you're using two spears? Fascinating, I want to see how well you can use those!" Zekken says happily.

"_Ugh...the only way I have a chance is to unleash my OSS. I've only done it once. After so many sleepless nights, I was able to create a special twelve hit OSS skill I named Crystal Whirlwind. But I've never used this OSS before now...so this is going to be a_ massive _gamble._" I think to myself nervously.

"Here I go!" Zekken shouts as she charges me, causing me to panic.

"I don't think so! Gust of Lightning, engage!" I shout, triggering the activation phrase for my OSS: Crystal Whirlwind.

Crystal Whirlwind's attack is rather simple. I attach my two spears together to form a double-bladed sword, and begin spinning around my opponent repeatedly while attacking from all sides. My fifth hit involves me instantaneously breaking apart my dual bladed sword and repeatedly slashing my opponent until hit eleven, and by hit twelve, I usually send my opponent flying. I'm thankfully able to get a drop on Zekken before she puts up a defense, and my OSS manages to get her health reduced by forty percent. However, not even my OSS is able to defeat her, and she unleashes a barrage of sword slashes on me and sends me flying, reducing me to a violet Remain Light. Zekken flies near my Remain Light and casts the resurrection spell as the others fly toward us.

* * *

"Nice work, Solaris! How did you create such a powerful OSS?" Zekken asks happily. I guess not many people have gotten her to such a state before.

"Um...whenever I had free time, I worked on developing that OSS, and since I made this before school started, nearly all my time was free." I say sheepishly.

"Are you insane?! You spent that much time in ALO making that OSS?! You told me you only spent a few hours a day trying to develop it!" Hikaru interjects angrily.

"Mmm...sorry, but this was something I wanted to make as soon as possible. I admit I lied about how much time I spent working on this, but you know how well I'm able to balance reality and this game" I say sheepishly, and a little angrily as well.

"Wow, talk about dedication. Are you going to be one of the fighters in the Knights team?" Zekken asks happily.

"Um...no, I'm working as strategist for my friends here and...you're a little too happy, are you always like this?" I ask nervously. I've never seen anyone this bubbly; the closest was Airi or Keiko.

"What a shame, your skill as a fighter seems to be wasted playing the role of strategist. And yes, I'm nearly always like this." Zekken replies with a winning smile.

"I see..." I say, mildly awestruck.

"But don't assume I'm a push-over in battle; your friends can confirm that themselves."

I hadn't noticed during my fight with Zekken, but Katsuo and Horizon were having conflicts, and it's suddenly erupting into utter hell.

"Yamakage, I want to challenge you to battle. I want to prove that the great Salamander is nothing more than a damn push-over who got lucky!" Horizon says angrily.

"Okay, that's it newbie, you're on! I'll show you my true strength!" Katsuo says angrily.

"Yamakage, stop this at-" I begin, before being stopped by Kazuto, giving me a simple shake of his head as if to say '_Let this play out if you want a peaceful end_'. I simply sigh in disappointment. When I see Kazuma, Airi, and Ophelia walk toward me, I decide to meet them half-way to create a little distance from my group.

"Sorry about Horizon, Karen. He's a bit of a hot-head by nature. He also envies Katsuo because Horizon was in the Salamander military since this game was made and he's currently a Corporal, but Katsuo was made Major, a very high rank, within two months time." Kazuma says apologetically.

"It's alright. Anyway, where'd you find Horizon and Zekken?" I ask curiously.

"Horizon is a member of the Salamander Alpha Battalion serving under General Eugene. We noticed his achievements during the grand quest, so Ophelia and I hand-picked him for our team. As for Zekken, she joined me as a diplomatic guest of the Imp race. I'm trying to improve Undine-Imp relations and Zekken was offered as a sort of peace token, as well as to broadcast her strength to the world of Alfheim." Kazuma says casually, somewhat to my surprise.

"I'm impressed, Kazuma. You were able to form such a powerful group; it'll be troublesome for us if we have to fight you" I say, awestruck at the fact these powerful fighters may end up becoming our competition in this tournament.

Kazuma leans in and whispers "I wouldn't worry about it much, this team is indeed powerful...but Zekken and Horizon both refuse to follow our strategies, so if you face us with your strategies, you'd have it much easier to win."

"How so? They hardly seem the sort to refuse strategies" I ask curiously.

"Horizon doesn't trust Airi because of her young age and therefore goes with strategies commonplace among the Salamander Alpha Battalion, and Zekken's...well, you know by battling her; she's one of the strongest in this world, but she's...yeah..." Kazuma whispers nervously, scratching his head when speaking about Zekken.

"I see..." I reply, my face even.

* * *

Meanwhile, the fight between Horizon and Katsuo has ended with a score of forty to two. This shocks me, as it clearly indicates Katsuo is the one winning the most when it comes to the death statistics in this special zone they're fighting in.

"Give up newbie, before you embarrass yourself even more! You're a Salamander, for god's sake! Show some humility and give up already!" Katsuo yells seriously.

"Gah..." Horizon growls before sheathing his sword.

"Horizon, you are the most troublesome person I've ever seen in Alfheim Online!" Zekken exlaims.

"Likewise, Imp..." Horizon says angrily.

"Calm down, both of you!" Airi shouts while whacking both Zekken and Horizon with her new battle-axe.

"OW!" Horizon and Zekken both shout out in pain.

"_Hahaha, this is just like what happened before when we were trapped here. Except, Hikaru and I aren't the ones getting whacked._" Katsuo laughs to himself, though I can just barely hear his words.

"That was uncalled for, Okamoto!" Horizon shouts out in pain.

"Yūgana, can't you do something about this?!" Zekken asks worriedly.

"Okamoto, if they get out of line, beat some sense into them, got it?" Ophelia says calmly.

"Got it nee-chan!" Airi replies happily, keeping a single hand on her axe.

"Yūgana, that's unfair treatment!" Zekken shouts, her face showing a mixture of both anger and fear.

"Deal with it" Ophelia says, her calm exterior doing nothing to hide the ice in her voice.

After all this, fights are breaking out between Horizon, Zekken, Ophelia and Airi, which is a good laugh for Katsuo and the others, but makes Kazuma sigh in disappointment.

"_Kazuma, you picked a god awful name for your team. It looks like Team Unity isn't so united after all_" I whisper to Kazuma while laughing.

"_It's the larger principle I'm looking at here. If I can get this scrambled mess working together, it'd become an example to the rest of the world_" Kazuma says with a sigh.

"_Best of luck, you crazy fool_" I laugh.

"Everyone, we're leaving, we're to begin combat training immediately!" Kazuma calls.

Kazuma and his team departs to execute combat training with Team Wolf departing shortly afterward.

* * *

"Best of luck guys, we'd better get training ourselves" Kazuto says as his team departs.

Team Wolf departs leaving only Team Knights outside Orion Castle.

"Karen, now that it's just us five, what are we going to do?" Katsuo asks.

"I recently outfitted Orion Castle with a similar duel ring, similar to what Hikaru had in his house back in Aincrad's floor 98 city: Iwaya. Let's train there. I think XANA would be willing to provide a few dozen of his monsters; it'd help with our training. But first, do you guys know what team we're going to be up against first?" I ask as we walk to the duel arena.

"Let me pull up a list" Kana says, opening her system menu and sorting through a list of players in this tournament. "Okay, we're facing Team Viper first, a group of Imp players who specialize in using poison effect magic. They have no physical strength, but their magic is a nuisance; they poison their opponents to a state where they can't even move a centimeter and then they gang up and kill the opponent." Kana continues and growls angrily upon looking up their description.

"Um...what does the list say about us, Wolf, and Unity?" I ask curiously.

"Let me see..." Kana says further checking the list. "Team Wolf's description basically says that each member of Wolf is one of the lucky Sword Art Online survivors with Wolf's leader and sub-leader, Kirito and Asuna, being the most powerful and famous of all the Sword Art Online players. Some say that Team Wolf will be the ones to rip through all of their competition and secure victory." Kana says quietly, trying to hold back her anger.

"Yeah...that figures..." Katsuo says quietly, holding back anger as well.

"Moving on, Unity has an interesting profile according to this. Team Unity was formed by the Undine leader to boost relations between the various races within the team: Salamander, Imp, Spriggan, and Cait Sith. Many people question the Undine leader's decision to recruit these individuals, because Horizon was never comfortable working with small groups and was suited to working with small companies or at the minimal, large squads, and Zekken has never been seen to work in groups before, and since this tournament requires teamwork, they both are questionable applicants."

The group has made it to the exterior of the duel ring when Kana pulls up the final requested team psych profile, and begins talking while I begin setting specifics for the match, not knowing at the time that I'd have to cut it short.

"Okay, last up is our own Knights team. Oh, according to this, we've become a fan favorite to win this tournament." Kana says in surprise.

"We're the fan favorites? Good to know that much" Sylvia says happily.

"Continuing on, the team known as Knights of the Blood Oath is reported to have been the name of Sword Art Online's primary guild responsible for leading the trapped players inside to freedom. An Imp player named Ashikaga is leading this team alongside four of her colleagues from Alfheim Online, these four colleagues are: a leader in the Salamander Alpha Battalion named Yamakage, a traveling Puca musician known as Minatoya, a Leprechaun blacksmith named Krisaga, and a Sylph player known simply as Ulkaios." Kana says calmly, with small smiles from us all.

"Investigation has discovered that these five players went by the names: Masaru, Elena, Amaterasu, Ulrich, and Solaris in the game Sword Art Online. Ashikaga, or otherwise known as Solaris, was one of the ring-leaders responsible for leading the successful operation in the first grand quest of Yggdrasil. This diverse group of players has the rare gift of years of internal cooperation and is creating popular support from the spectators hoping that the Knights will become the victors of this tournament" Kana reads.

"Wow...I'm impressed" Katsuo and I say nearly simultaneously. "Actually...when does this tournament start?" I ask.

"It starts tomorrow at noon. I'm not sure who, but anonymous high profile individuals involved with Alfheim Online negotiated about three or four days off of school for us to thoroughly participate in this tournament" Katsuo replies.

"Color me surprised...actually guys, considering the time, I think we should start completing our school assignments" I say calmly, and seriously when mentioning the assignments.

"Right..." Katsuo says with a sigh.

* * *

All five of us activate the immediate log-out and return to the internet cafe where we're wearing NerveGears to connect to Alfheim Online. I lightly rub my face as it's slightly sore from the uncomfortable material of the NerveGear, I do want to change to the Amusphere, but it's a little unusual compared to the NerveGear, and the fact is that all of my character data is on this NerveGear. We all start up the programs to do our school work and get to studying, after a couple of minutes, while I'm studying on my Literature, which is my toughest subject...

"Karen, could you help me with Japanese History?" Hikaru asks me.

"Let me see..." I walk toward Hikaru's computer to see the specifics of what his question is about: when the three non-nuclear principles were established.

"Oh, this. I'll send a few links your way. Use them as a reference," I say. I can't cheat and tell him what the answer is; he needs to earn it.

"Got it" Hikaru replies.

I send some computer website links to Hikaru's computer monitor via my own. I have to say, I'm thankful that Hikaru seems to have become a computer expert, easily understanding any technology from a single use. It's a load off my shoulders since he knows Japanese well enough now, he can freely search through information online and find anything he needs to at will. While I'm studying, I receive a notification for a message from Suguha Kirigaya, Kazuto's cousin, and when I open it, it reads:

"Karen, I was wondering if you'd want to join my team in Alfheim Online's Ragnarok tournament as a strategist."

I respond:

"Sorry Suguha, I'm already in Katsuo's team, Knights of the Blood Oath"

After a minute passes, Suguha's apparently at her computer and responds, "Hmph, fine."

"How mature of you, Suguha..." I murmur, only slightly sarcastic, and quietly sigh.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [17:00] May 5th 2026

We've been studying ever since we logged out of Alfheim and I suspect that my friends have other plans when they begin getting up.

"Sorry to do this Karen, but I need to get home..." Katsuo says sadly.

"I see. What about the rest of you?" I ask casually.

"Same as Katsuo...sorry Karen..." Kana says sadly with Sylvia nodding reluctantly.

"Okay then, I'll see you all later. I'll try thinking of some strategies for us to use during the tournament tonight. Let's talk more about this when we all get home, alright?"

"Got it" Katsuo says, with Kana and Sylvia nodding, who then depart.

"Okay...Hikaru, let's get going" I say.

"Alright" Hikaru says calmly, as we depart the cafe.

* * *

I just remembered that Katsuo has been living with Kazuto's family since he learned that his uncle moved overseas during our three year absence in Aincrad, with Kazuto's aunt: Midori having no complaints on the matter surprisingly. Kana's been living with her cousin's family, whom we know from Sword Art Online: Keiko Ayano. Sylvia has been living with her sister and brother in their house which is not too far away from the hospital we were in...now that I think about it, how in the world did Madoka manage to get that house in the first place? She's two years younger than Sylvia, which would make her fifteen. Maybe I shouldn't ask…

The two of us walk through the market district to reach my house, with us buying some groceries on my way. Most of the groceries we got were from stalls though we did get ramen noodles, leek, and kombu from a grocery store not far from my house.

"Karen, Clara said she needed ramen noodles, leek and kombu right? What's she making with this stuff?" Hikaru asks me while we're shopping for these ingredients.

"She's making Chicken Ramen tonight, it's one of her specialities." I say happily, it's one of my favorite dishes.

"I see, it's been a long while since we had that, though I never knew that these ingredients were used for it." Hikaru says happily and calmly at the second half of the statement.

* * *

After we finished shopping, we happen to pass by a dojo that I remember has been abandoned for over twenty years because of bad location and a lack of funds by its previous owner.

"One day, I actually want to restore this place to its former glory and turn it into a successful dojo." Hikaru says quietly.

"Good luck with that, but Hikaru, remember that this place has been abandoned for over twenty years, good luck trying to fix it up and try to build a good reputation." I say laughingly.

"Karen, you'd think as a girlfriend, you'd be supportive of what I try to do" Hikaru say seriously, with us both quickly blushing heavily when he finished.

"Um...it's not that I'm not supportive it's just...um...oh! Try to think logically on stuff like this..." I say nervously, looking away to hide my blushing.

"Y-Yeah...sorry about dropping that one on you Karen..." Hikaru says stuttering from embarrassment.

"It-It's no problem..." I say nervously.

We begin walking home very nervously at this point.

"_That's right...we started dating two months after we all left Alfheim. I wasn't absolutely sure back then...but I started showing signs of it back near the end of our time in Aincrad. And during Alfheim, I showed so many signs that I began noticing and feeling embarrassed whenever we were alone._" I say to myself nervously.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [17:30] May 5th 2026

We make it back to my house after a half hour of walking from the cafe, and we put the groceries on the shiny bronze colored counters in the kitchen.

"Welcome back Karen, Hikaru" My mother says happily from a different room, having heard us come in. "Did you get what I asked for?" She asks.

"Yeah, we got the ramen noodles, leek and kombu. We also got a bunch of other groceries for the next couple of days" I say calmly.

"Thank you, now that I have those ingredients, I'll start cooking, dinner will be ready in an hour." Clara says calmly.

"Mom, if you don't mind, Hikaru and I are going to log into an education Virtual world with Katsuo, Kana, and Sylvia" I say calmly.

"Hmm...very well, but please don't use the NerveGear if possible, I bought a pair of AmuSpheres for you two, if you can transfer your character datas, please use the AmuSphere" Clara says worriedly.

"I'd need to create a copy of everything in our NerveGears to our computers then transfer it to the AmuSpheres." I say calmly.

"If that's what it takes, I'd prefer you do it, after the whole Sword Art Online scandal, I just can't help but fear the NerveGear." Clara says in the same tone, walking into the kitchen, beginning to cook dinner.

"Hikaru, do you need assistance in this?" I ask calmly.

"I'd appreciate it Karen, thank you" Hikaru says, with the both of us walking to our rooms, with me going to Hikaru's room first to help him transfer his character data to the AmuSphere, before transferring my own. I'm quickly able succeed in transferring both of our character datas to our brand new AmuSpheres and we activate them in our own rooms, I'm just glad that he knows how to activate the NerveGear and AmuSphere, which both use the same start-up phrase

"Link Start!" I say, logging into the virtual network with me entering a small lobby room I created for casual and private conversations with my friends, it's password locked to further make this lobby private.

* * *

I see Katsuo, Sylvia, Kana, and Hikaru log into this lobby with custom made avatars, I myself have a custom avatar useable only in this lobby. My avatar is that of an angel with three foot long wings with a white one piece dress with gold trims, Katsuo's avatar is similar to that of a cliché RPG hero with dual blades, Hikaru's avatar is a ninja with small dual katanas at his sides, Sylvia chose to make an avatar that's the opposite of mine solely for comedy's sake, a devil with the same wing span as mine but colored black and red, with a one piece dress colored black with red trims, with Kana's avatar being a cyborg, her entire avatar body having cybernetic enhancements all over.

"Evening everyone, I trust you all got permission to be on here?" I ask in an angelic tone, it's a side-effect of being in this lobby, we take the voice tone of how we shape our avatars, though thankfully, our personalities are left untouched.

"Yeah, was not easy though, after the SAO incident, my mother's outright scared of the NerveGear, if it wasn't for the fact I hid it, she would've melted it down..." Kana says with a mechanical voice, sounding a tiny bit worried as well, atleast...I think so...I can't tell with that voice.

"You have my sympathies Kana, it must not be easy trying to connect to the virtual world huh?" Sylvia says in a demonic tone, trying to sound sympathetic but the voice makes it sound outright evil.

"Sylvia, why the hell would you make an avatar like that? It totally seems against your personality" Katsuo asks curiously, his avatar matches his natural personality nearly flawlessly.

"I did it for laughs, if Karen was going to play the angel role, I would play the devil role" Sylvia says laughingly, which makes it sound like cliché evil villain laughing.

"Mataku...you are one of the strangest girls I've ever met Sylvia...aside from Karen..." Katsuo says in the cliché brave tone of a hero but with a sigh.

"What is that supposed to mean?!" Sylvia and I say angrily, with me being mad about his use of Mataku as well "And how dare you steal my trademark!" I say angrily, though it sounds angelic cause of this avatar.

We both punch Katsuo in the face as payback sending him back six feet and causing him to fall on his back.

"Gah!...What the hell?! What was that for?!" Katsuo asks angrily. (A/N: 1)

"You had it coming for insulting them" Kana says calmly with her robotic voice, crouching down to him and laughing a tiny bit.

"Guys, can we seriously get to work? We have a bunch of school work to do, and don't forget work for the tournament" Hikaru says quietly.

"Hikaru's right, c'mon guys, let's head to the office building, the admin console for this lobby is there and we can use to freely access internet files for our work." I say calmly, with the angelic tone overshadowing it.

* * *

The five of us head to the office, walk to the council room on floor three and take a seat at the main table, with us all opening multiple windows in our menus which is making it very effective for us to do our assignments in this virtual world. I laugh to myself quietly at the fact that education is so much easier now with the advent of virtual worlds allowing us to freely access as much data as we wish alongside the fact our limbs never get tired unlike reality, making studying much easier, and this is one of the very first virtual worlds that's performing an experiment, our society's trying to see what would happen if we were to speed up a person's individual brain waves inside the virtual world, though for safety's sake, we're limiting it to twenty five times at the minimal, with fifty an absolute danger zone right now, though I heard there is technology that is doing this at a MUCH faster speed, though...it's only rumors. So essentially, we have more time doing this studying than typical, but it's only a little over two hours max compared to the normal one hour we'd normally have until Hikaru and I have to log out. After about a half hour passes, we finish all of our school work and begin talking amongst ourselves.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time [18:00] May 5th 2026

"With our work out of the way, Karen, do you have anything you want us to work with for the tournament?" Kana asks casually.

"There's one or two more things I need to know. Do all three warriors go out at once or is it one warrior at a time? That knowledge will be among the most crucial to me forming strategies for this" I ask curiously.

"Oh yeah, we should've mentioned that, all three warriors go out at once, it adds a great deal of unpredictability to the battle." Katsuo says calmly, as much as the avatar allows atleast.

"Okay, what kind of environments will be facing in the tournament?" I ask.

"There's no way to tell, they hide the environments until the last minute Karen. It's to prevent teams from gaining unfair advantages. However, Team Viper has zero melee power, they're dependent on magic, so if we prepare ourselves with that in mind, we'll win easily." Kana says calmly.

"Okay, let's play this calmly, Hikaru, Katsuo, Sylvia, tomorrow, I want the three of you to go out and get accessories to prevent poison. Having them will neutralize their strongest asset." I say calmly.

"Got it, any other strategies up your sleeve Karen?" Katsuo asks me.

"I'd need to see them fight first hand in order to come up with effective strategies, and I don't know if I'd be allowed to actively participate in matches." I say calmly. "...Until we find out more, I'll trust in your own judgements." I continue proudly.

"You sure that's a good idea Karen? You want to trust _our_ judgements?" Katsuo says sarcastically and laughingly at the same time.

"You all are more than capable of forming small term strategies on your own. Or are the lessons from Aincrad totally out of your minds?" I say laughingly.

"Good point, I do remember that forming small unit tactics were one of your requirements way back then. You were very freaking strict about it." Katsuo says, in a mildly freaked out tone.

"hehe, that is true, but you can understand why I'd be strict, we were literally in the fight of our lives then." I say laughingly. "Anyway, Hikaru and I need to go, we need to eat dinner soon" I say beginning the log out to return to reality.

* * *

A/N 1: If you want a reference with what happened to Katsuo, refer to episode 1 of the anime, when Klein is in the field.


	3. Interlude: Tournament Commence

Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works.

Once again, thank you for beta reading ailaxolotl (although it WAS a short chapter...lol...)

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [9:00] May 6th 2026

Since we have the day off of school, Hikaru and I decided to log into a private server until ten so we can get a little practice in before our first match against Team Viper, with Katsuo, Sylvia, and Kana logging in shortly after. Our custom avatars are being used in this lobby with temporary enhancements by XANA, allowing us to experience ALO in this private lobby. I feel pretty bad about XANA being forced to spread his processing power with each virtual world that's being created, so I've been trying to create something similar to the World Seed, with a processor that XANA could tap into so he'd be able to reap the same benefits that the World Seed offers Cardinal. I've had to do this alone since most of my friends were angry that I'm trying to help XANA, but I'm logical, I can see how XANA can benefit our development of the virtual world era. Cardinal's one of the few entities that is on my side on this matter, with us working together on constructing these processors for XANA so he doesn't eventually burn out from over-stretching his processes. He's already had to begun recalling processes from more and more virtual worlds, limiting the AI in each world.

I know that I should be hesitant about doing this, considering our past history, but I'm capable of letting bygones be bygones, especially since XANA has done nothing to break Cardinal's rules since last August. Naturally, I can never forgive him for all of the people his monsters killed back in Aincrad, but I know that the past is the past. I seldom care for it; I always look toward present and future. And XANA is a very bright element for a higher level of our future.

"Karen, I was able to get a little more information about the tournament. Strategists are directly involved with the matches, and there are significant drawbacks if you attack them." Kana says in her robotic voice.

"What kind of drawbacks?" I ask curiously; such information could be vital.

"Well, if it happens, the opponent's strategist must immediately leave the match and aren't allowed to participate until that match ends. One or two fighters from the team that launched the attack will be disqualified as well." Kana says.

"Wow, that's a tad harsh" I say in surprise. "But what about accidental attacks on strategists?"

Katsuo jumps in, saying, "It shouldn't happen unless major AoE spells are used. I hear that strategists will be somewhere where they can influence the battle, yet be safe from attacks."

"Actually, I have information of my own" Hikaru says. "Because of my familiarity with XANA and Cardinal, they told me of a special console of some kind that the strategists can use during the matches. Supposedly, it's used to summon monsters created by Cardinal or XANA to assist their team, amongst other things."

"Fascinating...though I highly doubt we'll need to take such measures in our matches. We are the best, after all, we can handle anything as long as we work together" I say proudly. Three years of fighting side by side does more than enough to back up my case. "Okay, let's try practicing a little. Because of the program I've been designing for XANA, his processing power is being increased with every processor he employs. Because of this, XANA is going to be bringing in some monsters here for us to practice our combat."

"Actually, I hate to be a hypocrite here, Karen, but...do you think XANA can be trusted? I'm a little worried..." Hikaru says quietly, concern creeping into his words.

"I understand your concerns, but XANA has had every possibility to go rogue since September of last year. It's almost been 8 months and he hasn't caused any trouble once" I say with confidence.

Though...I can see why they're worried after Aincrad.

* * *

A/N: After this, I won't be posting until next week. I need to get some priorities in real life sorted out. That's going to take time for me.


	4. Round 1: Team Knights vs Team Viper

Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works.

ailaxolotl, thanks yet again :)

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [10:00] May 6th 2026

After training, we quickly transfer over to Alfheim Online so we can participate in the tournament. As soon as we enter ALO, we're teleported to a field outside the city of Aarun. I notice walls around us, forming a circle, with trace amounts of a transparent barrier on the roof. I see Hikaru, Katsuo, and Sylvia below me. I guess I'm standing on the transparent barrier above the field, and I see that the person on the other end of the barrier is Garter, the strategist for Team Viper.

There are three people on the other end of this plain area where Hikaru, Katsuo, and Sylvia are; I'm guessing they're the warriors of Team Viper: Salamandra, Anaconda, and Dugite. I look around further to see an array of what appears to be bleachers floating far from this barrier and floating above it, with hundreds of people watching our fight against Team Viper, all of them saying things along the lines of

* * *

"Kick their asses Team Knights!"

"There's no way the group that cleared the Grand Quest would fall to a group of cowards like Team Viper!"

"Go Team Knights!"

* * *

I smile at all the praise my team's receiving, then I steel my heart to focus on the match.

"Looking at the stances of Salamandra, Anaconda, and Dugite, it'll be a cakewalk for us, though oddly...the aura of those four seems familiar to me. I can't put my finger on it, but I know I've seen these auras before, but...where…?"

I shake my head to get rid of these distracting thoughts and am inspecting my surroundings when I see a virtual console open in front of me, containing various options that I'm going to inspect later. I open a communication channel with my team, spawning headsets for all four of us to go over the tactics to use for this match.

"Okay, take up a Flying Wedge formation for this match. Katsuo, take the vanguard and draw the attention of Salamandra, Anaconda, and Dugite. While you do so, Sylvia will strike from the right while Hikaru strikes the left flank. Try to prevent their poisons from taking effect. The match starts in twenty seconds, so prep yourselves!" I say seriously. Apparently, this conversation can only be heard by my team, since the channel has a closed combination lock image on the upper left end of the console.

"Hehehe...bring it on!" Katsuo says eagerly, flexing his knuckles.

* * *

The twenty seconds pass, with Katsuo quickly flying toward the group of three warriors and activating every skill he has to draw their attention, trying to buy time for Hikaru and Sylvia to begin their attacks. Katsuo's attacks have scattered Salamandra and Dugite, leaving Anaconda behind. He is attacked relentlessly by Katsuo, with Hikaru and Sylvia chasing after Dugite and Salamandra.

Even though all three of the Viper members are receiving some sort of strategy from Garter, their poison effect magic is being negated by our superior strategy. With Anaconda slain, Katsuo goes to assist Hikaru in chasing Dugite down, with me watching from above the field.

I glance over to Garter, who is using the controls for a reason I don't understand. Maybe he's trying to open a communication channel. However, I quickly understand what he's doing when three Krabs with purple colored eyes are summoned into the field directly underneath Garter. As they spread out, I realize they're after Hikaru and the others.

"Hikaru, Katsuo, Sylvia, you've got incoming Krabs, prepare yourselves!" I say via the comm channel.

"We're busy trying to chase these two, Karen! Just summon some monsters to deal with them yourself!" Sylvia yells angrily, still pursuing Salamandra.

"I want to avoid summoning monsters unless it's absolutely necessary..." I say quietly, slightly miffed. "No, I refuse to be seen as a coward who relies on XANA's monsters. We are the Knights of the Blood Oath and we will survive using our own power!" I say proudly, remembering our prowess.

"Katsuo, listen. You've got two Krabs on your left. Deviate from your current flight vector and buy time for Hikaru to get Dugite. Afterward, go after the one targeting Sylvia. Hikaru, continue your course of action as planned-keep them from being stationary so they can cast magic. Sylvia, the same orders!" I say proudly. I have a good feeling about this.

"Understood!" They all say in unison.

I see Katsuo breaking away from his pursuit of Dugite to fight the hostile Krabs, with the others continuing their own pursuits. Garter inputs some sort of command in his console, and I start to tremble, feeling weak.

"What the?! What's going on?!" I say angrily before collapsing. When I glance at my field of vision, I see the status ailment icons of poison, paralysis, and silence. "Dammit! I can't give any orders with these status afflictions, and I can't use any spells because of the silence...Damn you, Garter!" I say in my mind angrily.

Garter glances at me, smirking evilly, obviously amused about my current position, when a system message from Cardinal and XANA suddenly appears over the arena.

"There has been a deliberate attack on Team Knight's strategist. The strategist for Team Viper, Garter, is ordered to vacate the area immediately, and the warriors Salamandra and Dugite are disqualified for this deliberate attack. Team Knights wins the match by forfeit."

"So we won...that's great! But...I need treatment for these status afflictions..." I say to myself with a heavy gasp. This avatar may be virtual now, but...my mind still hasn't adapted to that yet, even after all this time.


	5. Interlude: Round 1 Victory

Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works.

I'm just repeating it again but once again: thank you ailaxolotl

* * *

My three warriors and I are being enveloped by a bright light, which I'm guessing is being used for a teleport. We find ourselves outside Orion Castle when I receive a new system message from Cardinal and XANA. Noting that it's now noon, I read the message

"**Your next challenge will be at 16:00. Take some time to recuperate for your next match. The members of Team Viper will be under surveillance until further notice for their deliberate attack during the match.**"

I try to talk, but the status ailments plaguing me are still in effect. I can't talk, but I can still open my system menu. I send a PM to Hikaru, Katsuo, and Sylvia, telling them of my status. They all gasp in shock, and Sylvia begins casting spells to heal my status afflictions.

"Thanks, Sylvia. That damn Garter used his console to poison, silence, and paralyze me. It's what caused the automatic disqualification of Team Viper" I say with a few gasps, finally regaining the ability of speech.

"Damn those bastards for poisoning our friend..." Katsuo growls angrily.

"Try to relax, Katsuo. Team Viper has been disqualified and their cowardly methods will no longer influence the future matches" I reply, trying to calm him down.

"...Right. Anyway, according to this list, our next opponent is Team Black Cats. The members are..." Katsuo says quietly. He gasps when he opens up the member list.

"What is it, Katsuo?" I ask, opening a menu and inspecting the Black Cats team roster. The team is comprised of the core members of the guild: Black Cats of the Full Moon, originally from Sword Art Online. Sachi is the team strategist; Keita, Tetsuo, and Sasamaru are warriors, with Ducker handling equipment.

"Keita, Sachi, and the others are in this game? Great...we're up against comrades this time round..." I say quietly. Keita was one of my closest colleagues aside from Katsuo and the others.

"Don't worry about it, Karen. Anyway...Katsuo, Hikaru, Sylvia, hand me your weapons, I want to inspect them before your next match" Kana says casually, receiving Katsuo's sword & shield, Hikaru's katana, and Sylvia's 2-handed sword before departing to the forge in the castle.

* * *

"Karen, are you alright? I imagine you went through hell because of Garter" Hikaru asks me worriedly.

"I'm fine, let's just get inside the castle." I say calmly, before collapsing again. "What the?! Not again!" I shout in anger. Out of the corner of my eye I see Katsuo, Sylvia, and Hikaru drop to the ground as well.

"I...I can't move! What the hell kind of magic is this?!" Katsuo shouts angrily.

"This feeling is...familiar...is it...?" Hikaru states curiously. The sensation of this magic must be as familiar to him as it is to me.

"This has to be Gravity magic! Sugou used this on me, Hikaru, Asuna, and Kazuto back in August, but I thought this type of magic died with him..." I say weakly.

"That's right. We're going to use this magic to get revenge on you for getting us disqualified in that match!" There's no mistaking Garter's voice.

"That was your own damn fault for poisoning our strategist! Free us now!" Sylvia shouts.

"Not a chance. Now...DIE!" Anaconda growls angrily.

I see Garter, Salamandra, Anaconda, and Dugite draw their weapons and walk toward us, with Viper's equipment manager Ikaheka maintaining the Gravity's Void spell.

"Damn it...I can't fight back like this! It's not like when I was trapped there. I merely control an avatar, not my true self..." I think angrily, hating how useless I feel right now. When I truly controlled Ashikaga, I was much stronger since my own will was personally directing it, not just my mind.

Garter, Salamandra, Anaconda, and Dugite quickly approach us, ready for the kill, when I hear a voice in the distance.

"Get away from them!"

* * *

All eight of us look out in the distance and see a single player flying at near mach speed toward our position.

"That player...it's...Zekken!" Katsuo says in surprise.

"Damn it, Team Unity's strongest warrior is here...Salamandra, come with me. We're going to kill her now!" Anaconda growls angrily.

Salamandra and Anaconda fly toward Zekken to slay her. She dodges them both with near acrobatic skill and flies to Ikaheka, slashing him repeatedly with her dual blades. Ikaheka loses focus and releases the Gravity Void spell, freeing myself and my team. We then draw our back-up weapons to begin our counterattack against Team Viper.

"Yamakage, Minatoya, go help Zekken! Ulkaios and I will handle Dugite and Garter!" I yell, my pride stirring out of rage.

Katsuo and Sylvia fly toward Zekken to help her with fighting Ikaheka, Salamandra, and Anaconda, while Hikaru and I prepare to fight Dugite and Garter.

* * *

Katsuo, Sylvia, Zekken's POV:

"Zekken, we've come to help you out. We owe you that much for saving us!" Katsuo says in a small growl. His pride is injured, knowing that he is helping the person who kicked his ass before.

"Thanks a lot! Okay...Flower of Eternal Life, come forth! Mother's Rosario!" Zekken says in her usual giddy tone, beginning the incantation of her OSS.

Zekken activates her OSS, which quickly makes mincemeat out of Ikaheka, and Katsuo and Sylvia depart to fight Anaconda and Salamandra.

"I've been dying to slay you since you poisoned my friend!" Sylvia growls angrily to Salamandra.

"Bring it on, broad; I want to be the one to end your life!" Salamandra yells in return.

Sylvia and Salamandra begin fighting, sword and claws swinging, as Katsuo and Anaconda make conversation before fighting.

"Looks like our girls are having a catfight. Want to put off our fight a little to watch it go down?" Katsuo asks, trying to be humorous.

"As much as I'd want to say yes, I have an obligation to skin you alive" Anaconda says with a small evil laugh.

"And here I thought we could be friends...ah well...Time to die!" Katsuo says casually, using his sword to lay a cheap blow on Anaconda's right arm, dismembering it outright. It then explodes into purple wind.

"OW! Damn you! You goddamn bastard, some honorable warrior you are!" Anaconda screams angrily. In his opinion, no honorable military officer would do something like this.

"All's fair in love and war, and here in Alfheim Online, we're always at war, so it's always fair!" Katsuo says, laughing.

While Sylvia and Katsuo fought Salamandra and Anaconda, Zekken had difficulty deciding whether to help Sylvia and Katsuo or Karen and Hikaru, since she outright annihilated Ikaheka. She ultimately decided to go help Karen, as she earned her respect through that match the day before. She begins her flight to tackle Garter, who has Karen stuck in submission.

* * *

(Return to General POV)

"Zekken...thanks." I say quietly. I'm indebted to her for this.

"Don't mention it. You're a good friend of my leader, Izanagi. It's only right that I try my best to protect you from threats like this!" Zekken says happily.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [12:30] May 6th 2026

After Zekken helps me get Garter off my back, we team up to fight him as Hikaru fights Dugite on his own. Around this point, half a dozen Kalamars and a dozen Tarantulas, Creepers, and Hornets have spawned in the area, and one of the Kalamars steps forward to say:

"**Cease these attacks immediately! I will not tolerate sabotage of any kind to teams participating in this tournament!**" The Kalamar says angrily, broadcasting XANA's message.

"XANA...thank you, truly. Can you get these guys out of here? I hate to sound pushy, but we do have preparations to make." I say calmly.

"**As you wish. Team Viper has crossed the line and will be punished accordingly.**" XANA's Kalamar says.

The monsters summoned by XANA surround Team Viper and teleport them all away. We all group together to try to get a feel of our status from all of these attacks.

* * *

"Zekken, we all owe you big time. If it wasn't for you, Team Viper would've killed us...how did you manage to come to our aid so conveniently?" I ask curiously, with a bow in appreciation for Zekken's aid.

"Horizon and I were ordered to keep an eye on Team Viper by Yūgana and Izanagi; they had a feeling that they'd try something like this against you. But Horizon refused to follow that order and took off, so I was on my own." Zekken says sadly. "Also...you don't need to call me Zekken when we're alone. Call me Yuuki Konno. Or just Yuuki." She says, quickly cheering up.

"Okay...Yuuki, either way, we owe you for saving us, so...arigatou gozaimasu." I say awkwardly, though I do bow in appreciation.

"You know, she has a point, Yuuki; Ikaheka kept us trapped with that Gravity spell, and we wouldn't have been able to fight back without you distracting him and breaking the spell. I never anticipated that they'd have such powerful spells in their arsenal. I'm just glad we kept them mobile during our match... We owe you our lives." Hikaru says with a bow.

"Oh, stop, you're making me blush!" Yuuki says laughingly.

"Anyway, if you were willing to give your name, it's only fair we do the same. My name is Karen Koizumi" I say calmly.

"Oh, I know the Koizumis! You know, your family was one of the main groups who created Alfheim Online a few years ago. I never would've guess I'd get to meet the famous Karen Koizumi, who was one of the top dogs in Aincrad!" Yuuki says excitedly.

"Famous? Now you're making me blush..." I say sheepishly with a nervous laugh. I only learned that my family made this game after I was freed from SAO, though Koizumi Designs is distancing itself from VRMMOs because of the bad reputation Sword Art Online and Alfheim Online have built.

"Katsuo Viperia. Pleased to meet you Yuuki Konno; I'm eager to win against you in battle!" He says, ego swelling.

"Hehe, do you think victory against me will be easy? Especially considering how easily I kicked your ass the last time?" Yuuki teases, making Katsuo growl slightly in anger.

"Sylvia Miyagawa...pleased to meet you..." Sylvia says in a quiet tone, ashamed of how quickly she lost her cool when fighting Salamandra.

"Hikaru Murai. Pleased to meet you."

"Pleased to meet you all too, actually...On an unrelated note, believe it or not, Bungeishunjū Ltd. is beginning to write a documentary of all of the survivors of the SAO incident. I'd try to prepare yourselves for that if I were you." Yuuki says.

"Yeah, figures..." I say with a sigh. I'm not really comfortable with interviews.

"You can't exactly blame them, Karen. After that incident, they're going to want details of the three years we spent in Aincrad." Katsuo says.

"Katsuo's right. Now, I hate to leave you hanging, but I have to get back to Izanagi and Yūgana. Goodbye!" Yuuki says happily, beginning her flight.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [12:45] May 6th 2026

Yuuki is flying away from the area as Kana exits the castle.

"Okay guys, I repaired your weapons and...what the hell happened out here?!" Kana panics, obviously freaked out about the damaged environment in front of the castle.

"Oh yeah...the Gravity Void spell causes significant damage to the surrounding environment, and with it being a combination of Dark Magic and Gravity, Imp players receive a boost. Team Viper is nothing but Imp players." I say to myself a tad nervously.

"Look Kana, just try to calm down and I'll explain what happened" Katsuo says. Though, he's soon regretting his words, as Kana is even more pissed now.

"Don't you dare tell me to calm down, Katsuo!" Kana says, drawing her rapier and chasing Katsuo, all friendly pretense gone.

"AHHH! I thought I had to be married to suffer this kind of abuse, not dating!" Katsuo shouts in fear, running from Kana as fast as he can. He may be a strong warrior, but he certainly isn't the strongest, and he has plenty of things he's scared of. Kana being mad is one of them.

* * *

While Katsuo is being attacked by Kana; Hikaru and I are laughing our asses off.

"Haha, this is too funny!" I chuckle.

"Can't deny you on that Karen, this is golden!" Hikaru says, with the same tone as my own.

"Karen, Hikaru, we should be trying to stop this..." Sylvia says quietly.

"Why aren't you helping me?!" Katsuo shouts in mild fear, Hikaru and I not paying too much attention.

"Sorry, Sylvia, but screw that, I want to see this go down. It's about time the lovebirds have their first fight, even if it's over something as idiotic as this." I say.

"Seriously, why aren't you guys helping me?!"

"Speaking of relationships, Sylvia, when are you finally going to work up the guts to ask Kazuma out? Everyone in our group knows you like him, even Airi, Ophelia, and Madoka." I ask curiously. Sylvia's face lights up like a christmas tree.

"W-Watashi...um...I...I don't like him that way!" Sylvia stutters.

"Quit lying to yourself Sylvia! Trust me when I say that you like Kazuma and Kazuma likes you, but neither of you are willing to take the first step!" I say, mildly annoyed. "Do you seriously want to have a relationship that your friends or your own sister have to start?" I ask curiously.

"Karen, I don't need help with relationships. I'll go at my own speed! Besides, Kazuma totally has a crush on you!" Sylvia retorts indignantly.

"Not to offend you Sylvia, but if you go at your speed, you'll never start. Besides, I talked Kazuma and told him outright that I'm in love with Hikaru. Sure, he felt a little heartbroken, but he's moved on, and now he likes you!" I say, trying not to outright piss her off.

"That's my decision to make, Karen! If it goes slow, it'll go slow!"

"Um...Karen, sorry to interrupt, but...I'd recommend dropping the matter." Hikaru says to me nervously, remembering how hostile Sylvia was capable of being in Aincrad.

"Eh, very well. If we were in Aincrad, I would've pushed on, since we were all so much stronger...our senses have freaking dulled since that time" I say with a sigh.

"I suppose that's true. Aincrad was our toughest challenge in our young lives." Hikaru says with an inaudible sigh.

"Look, Karen, it's just…-" Sylvia stutters, trying to find the words.

"Help me, you damn bastards!"

"Hikaru, go break the two of them up, alright? I say that's enough" I say, wanting to make a little distance.

"No promises, Karen. I may end up liking this too much to stop, but since you asked, I'll try my best" Hikaru says with a tiny laugh, before going to break up the fight.

* * *

Hikaru goes to do as I asked, leaving myself and Sylvia to talk about this private matter.

"You're afraid to take the leap, right?" I ask, confident that's the right answer.

"Yeah..." Sylvia says, looking down to hide the blush on her face. "...you think I'm being stupid, don't you?" Sylvia asks me very quietly, as if she didn't want me to hear.

"Of course not, Sylvia! It's natural for a girl to be nervous about things like this!" I say compassionately, trying to cheer her up.

"Really? You weren't like this when Hikaru asked you..." Sylvia says to me quietly.

"Well...I knew my feelings about him beforehand, and...well...everyone's different, so it may have been easier for me, but not everyone is like me" I say a little sheepishly.

"Wow...that's surprising, but it's so like you, Karen. Look...there was this guy I had a crush on for a long time before I joined Aincrad. I recently found out that he's dating a new girl and plans to marry her...I'm just a little scared I'll lose again. It's why I'm hesitant to leap into relationships, particularly this one..." Sylvia says quietly.

"Oh...that's why you're so hesitant. Look, I've always thought of you as a sister Sylvia, so... here's some advice from your onee-chan: throw caution to the wind and throw in all your chips, win or lose!" I say, putting as much optimism as my words as possible.

"I don't think advice like that will work but you are the smartest one in our group, so...I'll think about it. And 'onee-chan'? Really? Aren't you too old to pull pranks like that?" Sylvia says, pouting.

"You only live once, live it to the fullest, that's what everyone says!" I say jokingly.

"You're unbelievable, Karen. Sometimes I wonder how you even managed to survive Aincrad" Sylvia says with a small smile on her face.

"That hurts my feelings, Sylvia" I say sarcastically.

* * *

Hikaru finally managed to break up the fight, dragging Katsuo, and Kana to where we stand. Kana still looks pissed, but I can see digital marks of damage on Katsuo's face from being heavily scarred with temporary damage. I'm guessing she went full hostile and actually used her rapier on him.

"I hate ALL of you...you didn't come help me when I needed it the most!" Katsuo says angrily.

"You kinda had it coming Katsuo; you should never tell a girl to calm down. I have no damn idea why, but it pisses us off." I say calmly.

"You know, you could've told me that before I said that..." Katsuo says in frustration.

"It's not possible to tell the future, Katsuo. By the time I figured out what you said, it was far too late!" I say laughingly. "Sylvia, patch him up with your magic. We need him in top shape for our next fight." I say to her, regaining a little composure.

"Got it...onee-chan" Sylvia mutters quietly to my surprise before casting her healing spell.

"Woah...did she just?" The group all ask in surprise. They know I'm a tiny bit motherly with things like this, but they've never confronted me about it.

"Karen, you forced her to say that didn't-" Hikaru says to say but gulps in the face of the scowl I send his way. "Never mind..." He mutters nervously.

"No, I did not force her. And she surprised me as well. Trust me when I say that," I say casually, hiding my nervousness.

"Yeah...you're not that kind of person, I know that much. Okay...Kana...um, uh..." Katsuo says weakly, stuttering as he faces Kana.

"Relax Katsuo, I got the anger out of my system during the fight, and yeah, I got your equipment fixed. Here you go Hikaru, Sylvia, and of course, yours" Kana says in an upbeat tone while lightly tossing the weapons to Hikaru, Sylvia, and Katsuo.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [13:00] May 6th 2026

"Okay, everyone, we have three hours until our match, let's get training." Katsuo says loudly.

"I like the energy there Katsuo! Okay, let's get to work!" I say optimistically. Hikaru, Katsuo, and Kana go into the castle while Sylvia and I stay outside for one last conversation before combat training.

"Karen...I suppose I need to thank you. I won't deny I've been hesitant about the whole Kazuma thing, but, I think I'll actually try this time. No being jealous, promise?" Sylvia says jokingly.

"No promises Sylvia, I may one day decide that I want two boyfriends instead of one" I say with sarcasm.

"Hehe, duly noted. And...thank you" Sylvia says, gently smiling as the two of us walk inside the castle for training.


	6. Round 2: Team Knights vs Team Black Cats

Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works.

Refer to the other chapters for what I'd put here. Repetition is not fun for me much.

A/N: I had to shorten the title from what I wanted :(...Team BC = Team Black Cats.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [16:00] May 6th 2026

Our match against Black Cats team begins with Kana and the Black Cat's Equipment Manager on some off-site location. I'm on the same transparent barrier as before, but this time, instead of a grassland field, the environment is heavily volcanic. I'm willing to bet that the simulated volcanoes are unstable and could erupt at any moment.

"Everyone, be careful here! This environment's unstable and the volcanoes could erupt at any moment. Avoid them at all costs!" I say via the comm channel.

"Got it, Karen! We'll circumvent them as much as possible as we fight. Just focus on earning the victory." Katsuo says proudly. As the lead warrior, he does have a bit of pride to keep.

"Right. It looks like Sachi is the strategist for this match. Listen, I have no idea how Sachi works as strategist, so stay on your guard while you fight this out. Follow the Scorpion attack formation; Hikaru and Sylvia are to act as the pincers, and Katsuo, you have the honor of acting as the Scorpion's Fang." I say proudly, with the strategist in me taking over again.

"Understood!" They say in unison.

* * *

A notification blinks in the corner of my eye, which I find is a PM from Sachi.

"Karen, best of luck in this match. I won't pull any nasty tricks like Team Viper did, so you can let yourself relax a little. May the best team win!"

I respond in kind to Sachi's consideration for my well-being in this match, which earns me a small smile before she develops a serious stance as the timer begins to count down.

"The match starts in ten seconds, prep yourselves!" I say seriously.

* * *

I inspect the console further to see the full list of its commands. Since I only used the comm channel before, finding the command to summon monsters as Team Viper had seemed insignificant...for now, at least. I watch Hikaru and Sylvia veer left and right, steering clear of the volcanoes while Katsuo flies up to the sky, wings grazing the barrier below my feet.

Hikaru and Sylvia fight the three warriors to keep them from spreading out while Katsuo attacks as the Fang. However...things don't go well when Hikaru manages to defeat Tetsuo. Katsuo is caught in the path of a volcanic eruption during his strike that sets his right wing aflame. He spirals out of control into another eruption that does the same to his left, and is finally outright incinerated by a blazing gush of volcanic magma from the final volcano, resulting in his removal from the match.

"GAHHH!" I hear Katsuo shout as he's consumed by the magma.

"Damn it! I was really counting on Katsuo's attack there...Hikaru, Sylvia! I need you both to continue the attack as normal. We're switching from to Scorpion's Fang to Shock & Awe, so go all out!" I say angrily. Changing formations halfway through battle is always incredibly risky.

"Uh...Karen...we would, but...um..." Hikaru says in nervousness.

"What is it?!...oh" I ask, before noticing the problem: Sachi has summoned a dozen Mantas. "Damn it! With Katsuo out of the match, this could get very bad very fast. I have no choice..." I think, huffing in irritation. "Okay, hold tight Hikaru, Sylvia; I'm going to summon some monsters to give you a helping hand! Just hold out until they can reach you!"

* * *

I summon three dozen Hornets and half a dozen Great Wyverns to give a helping hand, boosting the Wyverns with a rage status ailment that should draw the Mantas away from Hikaru and Sylvia...which is succeeding as I watch the Mantas fly towards the large group of monsters I summoned. Hikaru and Sylvia take this chance to perform their OSS on Keita and Sasamaru: Silent Crane and Eternal Diadem respectively, with Sylvia's being a six hit OSS with Hikaru's containing eight hits. With the power of these OSS, Sasamaru and Keita are quickly defeated with major applause from the audience on the stunning appeal and power of the new and fascinating OSS feature pack; to no wonder, considering how difficult it is to perform and legalize an OSS.

I study Hikaru's Silent Crane with curiosity. He somehow managed to create the attack with a combination of katana slashes, ending with a grapple to send the opponent to the ground with heavy force. The Eternal Diadem's form is very unique in its appearance. Sylvia first creates a star shaped barrier with magic in the air, then she flies through the star to execute four heavy slashes with her Flamberge-type sword, the last two hits form an X shape.

"**Team Black Cats have been defeated. Team Knights is the victor!**" The system message states. The virtual leaderboard advances Team Knights to the right, as well as one other team.

A team named Phoenix will be facing us in the next round, and in the bracket directly below ours, I see a rather ominous pairing: Team Wolf versus Team Unity. This pairing terrifies me; all six warriors in those two teams are powerful. Even worse, this means that if we win our fight against Phoenix, we'll either have to fight Kazuto, Asuna, and Klein, or Kazuma, Zekken, and Horizon.

Neither option is really fun to ponder.


	7. Interlude: Round 2 Victory

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works._

Refer to the other chapters for what I'd put here. Repetition is not fun for me much.

A/N: I do not support anything that is written in this chapter

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [18:00] May 6th 2026

Hikaru, Sylvia, and I are enveloped by a light and find ourselves outside Orion Castle, with Katsuo and Kana nearby, small smiles on their faces.

"I take it we won again?" Katsuo asks, though he probably already knows the result.

"Yeah, it does sucks you got incinerated by lava and were forced out of the match though" Sylvia laughs, having seen Katsuo get burned by the eruptions in such a short span of time.

"Shut up" Katsuo says with a hint of annoyance. "Anyway, our next match will be tomorrow at noon. I hear that the first day holds the first two matches, the second day has the semi-finals, and the third day holds the finals. We'd better prepare ourselves for the worst during those matches, just to be safe...who are we up against tomorrow?" Katsuo asks worriedly.

"Let me check..." Kana says in an upbeat tone, checking the tournament listings. "Okay...Team Phoenix, the members are...oh, wow" Kana exclaims.

"Kana, what's wrong?" I ask curiously.

"Oh, nothing. Sorry, I just couldn't help it. Team Phoenix's members are Suguha, General Eugene, Lady Alicia, Lady Sakuya, and Lady Muraoka." Kana says, listing off the members with hesitation.

"Suguha's team? One of those members must've been a last minute selection, 'cause Suguha tried recruiting me as a strategist for her team when we were studying yesterday" I say in mild shock. "That team could be trouble. What's the layout?"

"Sakuya, Suguha, and Eugene are the fighters for the team. Muraoka is the strategist, and Alicia's the leader and equipment manager for Phoenix" Kana replies.

"So Michiru was the last minute addition after I turned down Suguha…"

"Karen, you're kinda famous for your strategies; you must have received quite a few offers for this tournament before now" Sylvia adds in.

"Not really...besides ours and Suguha's team, only one other team tried recruiting me. It was Mamoru's team actually; Team...Silicon, I think. Anyway, I hear his team got wiped out in the first round, so I think I made a good choice not working with him and Haruka, though me joining might've helped." I become quieter and quieter as I speak, not wanting to talk about this much. The attention's making me uncomfortable.

"I'm surprised militaries haven't tried giving you job offers yet, you'd be incredible at it!" Sylvia says with a smile.

"Look, I won't deny that I have a gift for strategies, but I don't want to work as a strategist in real life. I'd rather take over my father's company and design MMOs when he retires" I say with a sigh.

"I can respect that. Come on, let's go to the Dicey Cafe for a bite to eat and to celebrate our victories!" Katsuo says happily.

"Gladly" I say, with the others nodding in approval.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [19:00] May 6th 2026

We arrive at the Dicey Cafe to find Andrew, Tsuboi, Kazuto, Asuna, Rika, Keiko, Haruka, and Mamoru awaiting our arrival.

"Well, well, well, here come the guests of honor: Team Knights of the Blood Oath!" Mamoru says with a laugh.

"Yeah yeah, laugh it up, jerk" Katsuo says sarcastically.

"It's true though! You guys are the guests of honor here tonight. Agil, Tsuboi, how about the three of us have a pint of bourbon while the others here have soda?" Mamoru says with a small laugh.

"Mamoru, that really wise? You and Tsuboi have to be on Alfheim tomorrow and I'm working tomorrow..." Andrew asks a little worriedly.

"To hell with that! We ought to relax as much as possible before our upcoming trials. Hit me!" Mamoru says happily, raising a mug.

"If anything happens, it's all on you, Mamoru." Tsuboi says with a sigh, before raising his pint for a drink.

I watch Andrew fill three pints with bourbon as well as our glasses with various types of soda, before we all make a sort of toast to the victories of Teams Knights and Wolf.

"Actually...before we do this, Andrew, mind calling two taxis to have them come bring us back when the party's done? We probably won't be good to drive." Mamoru asks.

"I'll call taxis for you," I say casually.

"Thanks Karen-" Mamoru begins before I cut him off.

"Just don't overdo it! I don't want to see any of you passing out or vomiting!" I say with a touch of anger.

"Eh, that won't happen; we're pretty heavy drinkers. I can take four pints before things get out of hand...but you should probably stop us when we reach two" Mamoru says, winking.

"Got it, let's eat!" I say with a small laugh.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [20:00] May 6th 2026

Mamoru and Tsuboi ended up having two pints of bourbon before I made them stop, but Andrew only drank one half-pint since he had other customers to attend to. I guess Tsuboi and Mamoru were more aware than people usually are after drinking bourbon. While they were drinking, we had our food and soda to celebrate the combined victories of the Wolf and Knight teams, and before we left, we had a good conversation between us all.

"Congratulations, Karen. Kazuto. Both of your teams have made it to the semi finals," Haruka says happily.

"Thanks Haruka. Ya know, I'm surprised you actually survived SAO as long as you did. I guess you truly are built for survival, hehe." I say with a small laugh.

"That's mean, but I guess I can see your point there" Haruka says with a pout, since she was 12 when she joined SAO.

"Hey Karen, what do you think the chances are that we'll meet in the finals?" Kazuto asks me curiously.

"Pretty damn likely, to be honest Kazuto. Though I don't like your odds against Team Unity" I say gravely.

"I see. Anyway, I heard your next opponent is Team Phoenix. Suguha's in that team, along with Eugene, Alicia, Sakuya, and Muraoka, right? You guys think you can handle that?" Asuna asks us all rather seriously.

"There is no coincidence, only inevitability. If fate deems us worthy to win, then we will" I say with a small smile.

"You're throwing your stock in fate? That's not like you, Karen" Kazuto observes frankly.

"I was joking! Of course we'll win, but I'm not gonna act like it's a guarantee!" I chuckle.

I've really changed since meeting all these people. Before, I was rather serious and not the sort to make jokes like this, but I've opened up after being around everyone's unique personalities.

"Actually you guys, after this tournament, I planned on playing a new MMO made in the US called Gun Gale Online. Any of you want to join in?" Katsuo asks us all.

"I would, but...I'm gonna be busy with school after this. Since I don't originate from this dimension and I have no transcript or anything, it's suspicious to the teachers, so I really need to wow them with good grades" Hikaru says quietly.

"As much as I'd like to say yes, Katsuo, I'm busy with other matters and I can't really afford playing another MMO right now. I'm sorry!" Kana says apologetically.

"No, thank you. It doesn't really sound like something I'd be into, to be honest." Sylvia says a little bluntly.

"Eh, what the hell. It could be fun, so I'll join. But I don't want to transfer my character there right away...I kind of want to experience it with a new character" I say casually. "Of course, that does mean I won't be on Alfheim for a while. Good luck keeping yourselves sane without me!" I say with a small laugh. I say this since they were the ones who wanted me to return to Alfheim in the first place, and we were rarely apart the three years in Aincrad. Despite what they may claim, I've sort of become the center of this group.

"We'll find a way to get by without you and Katsuo in Alfheim. Hope ya have fun" Hikaru says sadly.

"Don't be discouraged, Hikaru! Katsuo and I are only going to be away in Alfheim Online, not reality." I say compassionately, giving him a little peck on the cheek, smirking at the blush that rises to his cheeks.

"You...won't be alone on that one" Mamoru says, lightly swaying to and fro. "I'm... planning on joining that game too."

"Mamoru...this really isn't the proper behavior of a future father" Haruka says with a sigh.

"Mamoru's becoming a father? He told me he was single with no girlfriend" I ask, mildly shocked. He does look in my direction with mild anger at the second part, apparently that comment pissed him off a little.

"Well...I told you all how I lost my foster parents in SAO, right?" Haruka says, grief laced into her words. I feel so bad for her; she lost a mother and father twice. Her birth parents both died a month after she was born, and her foster parents, the Uchimayas, were in SAO working as security when they died in the first month.

"_I actually worked with Hector and Amelia during that month...I was responsible for their death. They pushed me to help them work on their levels and we got slaughtered by the field boss: Rakshasa. I was in charge of a group of twenty, including myself, and everyone in that group but me died painfully. Katsuo and I met up again at that point, and he saved my life...Haruka has always held a mild grudge towards me since then, but...thankfully, she knows that it wasn't my fault directly, and still wishes to work with me._" I think guiltily, remembering that I'm partially the reason why she became orphaned again.

"Anyway, when we returned to reality, he offered to adopt me. Little odd, I admit, but...I don't have a lot of options here."

"You know Mamoru, being a father is nothing to laugh at. It's quite a pain, trust me" Andrew says in his usual tone.

"Thankfully, I'm skipping over the most troublesome part of raising a child. Look, I may not be making the absolute best example at this moment, but I happen to be a rather capable parent figure. I've babysat for a lot of people's kids, anywhere from infants to preteens" Mamoru says rather seriously. Maybe it's a brief pause from his mild stupor, though. I have doubts about Mamoru; he's always been a giant mystery, even more so than Kazuto.

"Actually, I'll be in Gun Gale Online too. Kikuoka asked me to investigate something," Kazuto chimes in.

"So it'll be me, Katsuo, Kazuto, and Mamoru in this MMO once the tournament ends, huh?" I say. "Should be interesting. Anyways...it's getting late and we ought to go. I called a taxi for Tsuboi and Mamoru. It'll be here in ten minutes time."


	8. Round 3: Team Knights vs Team Phoenix

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works._

...Same old.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [11:55] May 7th 2026

We're outside Aarun waiting for our upcoming fight against Team Phoenix when I see _them_ approach us.

"It's been months since I've seen you all, aside from you: General Yamakage." Eugene says, slightly smiling at the additional promotions Katsuo's received after he rejoined the Salamander military following the operation in Yggdrasil.

"General, it's been ages" Sylvia says with a bow. "And Katsuo, you became a General too? Congrats"

"It's nothing special, though these promotions are becoming tougher to receive since the Salamanders aren't at war with the Sylph anymore. I had to work my damn ass off to get promoted to General." Katsuo says with a sigh.

"Lady Sakuya, Lady Alicia, Lady Muraoka, it's an honor to see you again." I say with a bow.

"Likewise, Lady Ashikaga" Sakuya says with all three bowing slightly.

"_Lady_ Ashikaga?" Sylvia asks me curiously.

"It's not official yet, but because the Imp leader quit Alfheim Online a week ago because of real life affairs, I'm being considered as the top candidate to rule the Imps. There's still some ongoing deliberation between the council's other two candidates. The best estimate is that they'll decide within a week." I say a tiny bit sheepishly.

"But if you do become Imp leader, how do you plan to balance being leader while you're playing Gun Gale Online?" she asks me quietly, since the decision to play GGO is still new.

"I should be able to establish temporary connections between my character here and in GGO. I'll guide that connection while I'm in that game world" I say rather confidently. After all, I was helping Ophelia design that kind of application not too long ago.

"If you say so, Lady Ashikaga" Sylvia says with a laugh.

"I'm really going to regret this, aren't I?" I say with a sigh.

* * *

Leafa & Hikaru POV:

Meanwhile, Leafa and Hikaru went off a short distance to have a little chat, and to reminisce about the past.

"Suguha, good to see you ingame again. You have to admit we've come a long way since you saved me in the Ancient Forest last year" Hikaru says to the blonde avatar: Leafa with a small laugh.

"Yeah, I remember you being completely helpless, about to crash into the ground when I saved you. A small part of me misses those days. It felt a little good to play the role as mentor." Suguha says with a little nostalgia and a small laugh.

"That's harsh Suguha, I wasn't completely helpless, come on, that was my first minute in Alfheim Online! You honestly expect me to fly when I'd never done so before?!" Hikaru says increasingly nervously.

"Excuses, excuses, cry me a river" Suguha says sarcastically, with laughing following.

"You are so evil..." Hikaru says with a sigh.

"How rude, you're calling me evil when I'm trying to be friendly and make jokes."

"...Suguha, your jokes NEVER sound like jokes" Hikaru says bluntly, with the reward for this statement being a uppercut to the stomach. "...Urk…"

"You had that coming Hikaru" Suguha growls slightly, walking away in anger.

"Hehe...That should inspire her to fight at her best. None of us should be holding back in this tournament." Hikaru mutters, having planned this to encourage her to do her best.

* * *

General POV:

"Let's make a promise to not hold any grudges whether we win or lose, is that acceptable?" I ask seriously.

"Naturally, there will be no animosity between our groups, whether we win or lose." Eugene says calmly, with a small smile.

"Ashikaga, I'm looking forward to our battle, you will not have an easy time like the matches versus Viper and Black Cats. I am a very skilled strategist and I am eager to take down the 'famous' Knights Team like the beginners you are" Muraoka says eagerly, presumably to egg me on to do my best.

"Bring it on Muraoka, I cannot wait for my team to utterly wipe out yours. Enjoy the few victories you've earned, for they are fleeting, prepare to be defeated" I respond in the same tone as Muraoka, with all of us laughing at the end, despite this supposed to be a serious moment.

"Best of luck all of you" Eugene says before departing with Team Phoenix.

"Okay, this is how it's going to go. Eugene, Sakuya, and Leafa are the fighters for that team, Katsuo, you have the honor of facing Eugene once again. Sylvia, I want you up against Sakuya, Hikaru, I want you against Leafa. Cut Leafa and Sakuya from the equation early and the three of you can work together to take down Eugene, he may be strong, but there's no way he can fight against three people at once." I say proudly, before being enveloped by the same teleport light.

I see Muraoka across from me on top of the barrier and when I look below to get a view of the battlefield, it's shrouded in utter darkness, which will make it difficult for Katsuo, Sylvia, and Hikaru to fight without my direct assistance, I am really glad right now that I was placed in the Imp race for their excellent Night Vision.

"Okay everyone, look, this field is tiny compared to the last two, follow my directions precisely and victory will be possible." I say with worry, I've never done step by step directions of this scale before.

"Got it Karen, just tell us what to do" Katsuo says confidently.

"The match starts in 10 seconds, when the match starts, Hikaru, take 15 steps northwest and stay there until I say otherwise, Katsuo, take twenty north, Sylvia, 15 northeast"

"Got it" They say in unison.

* * *

When the battle starts, they move as I requested, moving like pieces in a chess game. I decide to summon six Kalamars to act as independent pawns to get a feel for the battlefield and to create more uneasiness among Team Phoenix. I glance in the field below to see Eugene getting close to Hikaru, though Eugene's stumbling in the dark like everyone else, with both Leafa and Sakuya staying together and is getting close to Sylvia.

"Katsuo, dash thirty steps west and slash using your two swords, Eugene's getting too close to Hikaru. Hikaru, take flight and head east to help Sylvia, Leafa and Sakuya are getting too close. Sylvia, try to buy time for Hikaru to reach you"

"I'll try my best...this god damn darkness is making it difficult to see!" Katsuo says with a minor growl.

"Got it Karen. Sylvia, I'll be there in a minute, hold on" Hikaru says, beginning to fly east, making it half-way when Sylvia opens her comm.

"I need to keep quiet in case they...Damn it! Hikaru! Break off, you won't make it in ti-" Sylvia tries to say before the link suddenly is broken between us three.

"Karen, what the hell happened? We lost contact with Sylvia" Hikaru asks me in shock and anger.

"Let me see...Damn! Leafa and Sakuya got her. Hikaru, try to make it back to Katsuo if possible. Katsuo, it'll give away your location, but cast a Solar Flare spell in the air. You need to get Hikaru to your position, I'll direct the Kalamars to stall Sakuya and Leafa as much as possible." I say, gritting my teeth in mild anger.

"I REALLY have my complaints with that plan Karen... but you're our leader and strategist. I'll follow your plan. Hikaru, you had better be speedy, I have serious doubts I'd be able to fight off all three of 'em at once." Katsuo says with a sigh, beginning the incantation for Solar Flare.

* * *

I see Katsuo launch the Solar Flare spell into the air which illuminates the entire battlefield, with me fully seeing it's an aquatic environment which could present an interesting use for Katsuo.

"Change of plans, Katsuo, send a fireball to that lake and hide in the steam. Hikaru, go help the Kalamars fight Leafa and Sakuya. We're already at a pretty big disadvantage, so you need to make every move count!" I say solemnly.

"Hm...I can picture that plan working, sending a fireball that way now. Sorry Hikaru, but you're on your own, though you should be able to handle two Sylphs alone." Katsuo says with a laugh. "Ek uerpo einn brundr kalla bresta bani steifa lundr drótt" Katsuo chants the spell, sending a fireball to the lake, causing it to envelop the area in steam, and hiding in it.

Meanwhile, Hikaru flies to the location of the Kalamars to help them fight Leafa and Sakuya, who are already starting to tear the Kalamars apart, so I use the brief window of influence the Kalamars to summon two dozen Krabs and a dozen Mantas to counter the monsters Muraoka summoned and to stall them.

I see Hikaru rapidly flying toward the large group of monsters in the east half of the battlefield. He arrives in the area very quickly and takes up combat with Sakuya with it taking quite a while because of their strong skill in combat, though Hikaru should be far stronger with the years he spent fighting. I'm taking the time to move all of my monsters toward Leafa to keep her attention occupied, though Muraoka's summoned monsters are attacking both my monsters and Hikaru, with Katsuo being spared because of the steam he's maintaining, though it won't last forever.

"Hikaru, you need to try staying strong, take down Sakuya and then concentrate on fighting Leafa. I'll summon as many monsters as needed to slow her down." I say, operating the controls at rapid speed.

"I'll do my best, but this is starting to wear me down." Hikaru says, exchanging three strikes with Sakuya.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [13:00] May 7th 2026

After about an hour passes of extensive combat between Hikaru & Sakuya, and Katsuo & Eugene, I see a victory made on my side with Katsuo slashing Eugene to utter oblivion with his improved skill in dual bladed combat. Though I wish things were going as well for Hikaru...Leafa and Sakuya are teaming up against him and ignoring the monsters I summon with Muraoka's monsters fighting the ones I summon. As it goes on, I decide to take a risky move to redirect ALL of the summoned monsters to fight Sakuya and Leafa.

"Katsuo! With Eugene out of the way, go help Hikaru quickly! He's getting his ass handed to him" I say rather bluntly, I do not want to lose this match, not after everything we've done to get this far, and right now, this could easily become a 2 on 1 match.

"Got it Karen! Hold tight Hikaru, I'm on my way!" Katsuo says seriously, quickly beginning his flight to reach Hikaru.

I watch Katsuo fly toward Hikaru when I see Muraoka draw her own weapon and seemingly getting ready to fight me. I begin stumbling when she activates her flight toward me, and I instinctively close my eyes, and when I open them a little bit later, I see Muraoka behind me, with a purple vanish light in front of her sword.

"Muraoka?" I ask curiously.

"It was one of Team Viper's goons: Salamandra, she was about to stab you. I presume she was trying to kill you in revenge over what happened in the first round. I saved you from her. You're welcome, Karen" Muraoka says casually, with a small smile at the end.

"...I see, thank you Michiru." I say a little sheepishly to the Spriggan leader, having learned her identity not too long ago.

"Don't mention it. I ought to return to work" Michiru says with a smile, returning to her side of the field.

"Karen, you okay?! I heard the fight from down here! Same with Leafa and Sakuya. I took that chance to eliminate Sakuya from the battle." Hikaru says worriedly, with one piece of positive news from this interruption of Team Viper's interference.

"I'll be fine, Michiru saved me from Salamandra's attack. Those damn Team Viper bastards never give up! What will they NOT do to mess with us?!" I say with a sigh. "Katsuo, you need to hurry, I can see Leafa gaining the advantage. Eliminate her quickly and we can win!" I say this too late sadly, as I see Leafa perform a spiral slash on Hikaru, eliminating him from the battle.

"You'll pay for that Leafa!" Katsuo growls during his flight, rapidly flying toward Leafa with his dual blades, activating his OSS: Fusion Lance for the first time since he entered this tournament. "Wings of Annihilation, Set my enemies aflame. Fusion Lance!" Katsuo says, engaging the incantation to activate his OSS.

Leafa desperately tries to dodge the upcoming OSS, but Katsuo is utilizing the paralysis debuff that's within Onyx Shark to prevent Leafa from escaping the upcoming barrage. After the OSS is finished, she's sent crashing into the water below them and floats for half a minute before being enveloped by light, as it took time for her HP to reach 0.

"...that...was...exhausting..." Katsuo says with heavy pants, feeling strained by fighting Eugene so long and unleashing his OSS, before being enveloped by light and the two of us find ourselves outside Kana's shop in Aarun, with Hikaru, Sylvia, and Kana here.

When we arrive at Kana's shop, I take a look at the tournament brackets and find this pairing for the finals: **Team Knights vs Team Unity**. That means that Kazuto, Asuna, and Tsuboi fell in battle to Unity. If these three fell, I'm beginning to have my doubts that we'll win, but only time will tell.


	9. Interlude: Round 3 Victory

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works._

ailaxolotl, thanks like always

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [15:00] May 7th 2026

We're in the Dicey Cafe again with everyone from before. I'm guessing they're here this time to celebrate our progression into finals.

"Congrats, you all. You're lucky to have made it to the finals!" Haruka says with a small smile.

"She has a point, you guys ought to be proud. I do feel a little pathetic, though, since my team got annihilated by Kazuto's in the first round..." Mamoru says with a small sigh.

"Speaking of which...Kazuto, could you tell us anything about how Unity fights?" I ask him.

"It's horrifying, Karen; simple as that. The moment the match started, Airi summoned six dozen Mantas, hoping for a quick and decisive victory. They annihilated Klein within a half hour, and Asuna and I barely evaded their attacks. Luckily, we did manage to defeat Kazuma and Horizon, though Zekken slayed us both not long afterward." Kazuto says in a depressed tone.

"Wow...you all got beaten so easy...you have my condolences. Hm?" I say sadly, and curiously when my phone's ringtone goes off. I notice it's a text message that simply says

"_Karen-Ophelia, Airi, and I want to talk with you about something rather important. We're outside the park where we hung out at as children. I'd prefer to speak to you privately, but you can bring a single person from your group of friends if you like. -Kazuma_"

"_Hmm...this could be serious. He's never the sort to make jokes. I should go see what he wants. I should bring Sylvia too; maybe I can finally get her or Kazuma to take that first leap._" I think, pondering the situation. "Sorry to cut this a little short guys, but I need to leave. Sylvia, do you mind coming with me? Katsuo, Hikaru, Kana, I want you three to ask what we planned to ask, and send the info to me later." I say a little seriously.

"Got it, Karen." Katsuo says.

Sylvia and I depart the Dicey Cafe, where she asks me the question I was expecting.

"Karen, what's this about?" Sylvia asks me curiously.

"Well...Kazuma wanted to speak with me, and he said I could bring one friend. And I figured..." I say, being intentionally vague.

"You're gonna to try to hook us up, huh?" I respond with a nod.

"Eh...what the heck." Sylvia says with a mild sigh.

* * *

The two of us head to the park where Kazuma, Airi, and Ophelia should be waiting for us. I can't explain it, but I've been getting the oddest feeling that someone's been following us since we got off the train. I try my best to ignore this feeling, since there were priorities that we had to do. Our luck in reality is how the four of us: Katsuo, Hikaru, Sylvia, and myself have been doing minor martial arts training that started during our physical rehabilitation, which we kept up for different reasons: Katsuo does it for outright fun, Hikaru does it to keep in shape, I do it to try maintaining some of the edge I built up during Aincrad, and Sylvia does it for fun as well, but she is forced somewhat because of her six year contract to Koizumi Designs. She was burdened with this contract because my parents paid in full for Tsubasa's operation, which was a significant investment on their part, as well as the fact that Sylvia does need to make up for the fact Madoka lied to them for so long. They had no problem whatsoever helping one of my closest friends, but they did have to make some sort of 'profit' as custom of a business, so they contracted Sylvia to work for the company, with a percentage of her paychecks being deducted to help cover the cost of the operation until it's fully paid off.

* * *

"Hey Sylvia...do you hold any resentment toward me?" I ask worriedly, having remembered her contract to Koizumi.

"Why would I resent you, Karen? My life has improved immensely alongside Madoka's and Tsubasa's; I have a stable job, I can go to school full time, and my expenses are being helped with by the company. Granted, I admit that this isn't my ideal dream, but reality is reality. You need to make the best of it sometimes." Sylvia says frankly. I have so much respect for her outtake on life nowadays. "Anyway, how long will it take to reach this place...I'm getting butterflies in my stomach thinking about the plan..." Sylvia says, developing a light blush.

"Not too much longer, don't worry!" I say with a smile, hoping to cheer her up.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [15:45] May 7th 2026

We've arrived in the park, seeing Kazuma, Ophelia, and Airi greet us with grim faces. We approach them, when Kazuma says to me

"Karen...listen, you and your friends are in danger. We've done a little research and we found that Team Viper are all former members of a SAO guild named Laughing Coffin." Kazuma says very seriously.

"How...how do you know this?" I ask in shock, fearful of that guild, since they had no problems killing people in Sword Art Online, and they all knew that killing people in game led to death in reality.

"Like I said, I did my research, and...you can hate me as much as you want, but Ophelia and I sent a non-lethal virus to your character datas to analyze your memories and experiences. We then ran some testing on Viper after their repeated attacks on you, since they seemed hell-bent on killing you. But listen...you _are not_ safe! They must've used resources from SAO to connect your real selves to your avatars in Alfheim. They know who you are and are trying to kill you in reality now since their attempts in Alfheim failed." Kazuma says gravely.

"Hmm...I...I can't bring myself to trust you on that one...though Viper have been trying to kill us repeatedly. But...what should we do?" I say in disbelief.

"Until this matter is dealt with, _do not_ connect to Alfheim in any locations that could easily lose their security. I want you five to connect to Alfheim in the hospital you all were staying in, you'll be safest there." Ophelia says seriously.

"We actually contacted a government task force called the Virtual Reality Crimes Division, and they sent an undercover team to guard the five of us and your friends. This task force is particularly committed to keeping you five alive, because of your accomplishments over the last four years." Kazuma says quietly.

"Us five specifically? Sure we pulled off a lot but...that seems excessive!" Sylvia says in mild surprise.

"Well, we appreciate everything you guys have done for us, especially when you sent Yuuki to help us before" I say in a happy tone, though noting their confusion.

"Yuuki? We didn't send Asuna to help you" Kazuma asks me, rather surprised.

"Oh yeah...you must not know her real name. Zekken's real name is Yuuki Konno, she told us that when you two sent her to Orion Castle" I say casually.

"...We didn't send Zekken to help you back then; at that time we didn't even know Team Viper was a threat to you." Ophelia says in shocked confusion.

"Huh? But...Yuuki told us that you two ordered her and Horizon to keep an eye on Team Viper!" I say in equal surprise.

"Not really...Ophelia did create a portal so the three of us could freely access Orion Castle. Zekken...no, Yuuki, must've found out how to use it and came to help you, just in case." Kazuma says with a small sigh.

"I see...anyway, I wanted to ask you guys a couple things" I say seriously.

"What would that be, Karen-nee-chan?" Airi asks me in a cute voice. It brings back nostalgia of when she was a lot younger; she would talk like this rather often.

"First, with our upcoming match tomorrow, I want to propose a clean cut match, no monsters, just the strength of our own warriors."

"Fine by me. We only went all out on Kazuto's team because I had a suspicion that we'd face your team, Karen." Ophelia says with a smile, the first one I've seen since I got here.

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Karen. The audience deserves to see a fair fight between the two strongest teams in this tournament. Though...considering what we're up against, we'll probably get our asses kicked this time around." Kazuma says with a nervous laugh, still smiling.

"Anyway, we should be fine; we've taken up martial arts since we left SAO. If we do get attacked, we can defend ourselves. Though...Sylvia isn't too good at it herself. Kazuma, do you think you could walk with her back to her place? Just in case?" I say calmly, trying to improvise on something that would lead to Sylvia and Kazuma being alone.

Sylvia sends a quick scowl to me before realizing my intent and calms down, before walking away with Kazuma. Ophelia and Airi walk toward me after Kazuma and Sylvia walk away.

"You planned that out, didn't you Karen?" Ophelia asks me with a small cat-like laugh.

"Eh...I improvised. Truthfully, I wanted to get those two alone to try making things official. Now, we just have to wait and see what happens." I say casually. "Come on, we ought to get going. If what you say is true and Team Viper's hunting us, I don't want you two hunted as well. My parents wouldn't mind you two staying the night" I say in concern.

"Sure, that sounds fine by me" Airi says casually.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [16:00] May 7th 2026

We're leaving the park when we encounter a group of five adults, who quickly surround us.

"_Karen...those are the members of Team Viper we warned you about..._" Ophelia whispers worriedly.

"_Yeah...I recognize them by their appearances: Prince of Hell, XaXa, Johnny Black, Lahios, and Kinsa. I couldn't recognize them by voice since they rarely talked, but after hearing them in battle back at Orion Castle, I see now that Anaconda is PoH, Dugite is XaXa, Ikaheka is Johnny, Salamandra is Lahios, and Garter is Kinsa. I recognize Lahios, she was Makoto Kazuki's right hand officer back in Laughing Coffin. It's official...these guys are Laughing Coffin, alright. Either way...we're in trouble, my reflexes have dulled since I was trapped in Aincrad and Alfheim..._" I whisper worriedly.

"_Wait...Makoto? We lost contact with him years ago, we tried to find out what happened to him for the longest time. So he was in Sword Art Online all this time..._" Ophelia asks me in surprise. Makoto was the only other friend I had before SAO.

"_Makoto was one of Laughing Coffin's officers in Aincrad, though he turned a new leaf at the end of their reign. He helped me disband them before he was pierced in the chest by the other top officer: Hisae, and perished. I imagine Lahios vouched the name Viper as a sort of memorial._" I say quietly.

"Well well...Karen Koizumi, or should I say: Solaris. You've lived far too long. It's time I kill you once and for all. I'm not going to make the same mistakes as I did when I imprisoned you back in Aincrad. I should've killed you and your Senryaku group when I had the chance!" PoH says with a scowl.

"Prince of Hell, it's been far too long, or should I say: Vusago Casals? You truly have devolved into an utter coward, you feel you can only kill me with a group. How...pitiful!" I say laughingly. "I see you have your mindless peons: Shinkawa, Kanemoto, Ryoko, and Yumisa with you" I say condescendingly.

"Big talk for someone who's about to die. You've got guts however, I'll give you that!" Shinkawa says with an evil laugh.

"_This is not good nee-chan...if we don't do something, something horrible could happen..._" Airi says worriedly.

"All of you, kill these three now!" Vusago says seriously.

* * *

The group of five slowly approach us, when two ear shattering noises go off, Ryoko and Yumisa collapsing on the ground as blood begins to pour out all over the pavement, causing Airi and Ophelia to outright shiver in utter fear over the deaths of two people.

"No...No..." They say, panicking fear from seeing so much blood pour out from their bodies.

"Who did that?!" Vusago demands in anger.

"That, was my doing." I hear a voice say, stepping out from a nearby corner, rotating a single pistol, revealing himself as Mamoru.

"Mamoru!" I say in surprise.

"I got suspicious when you left so suddenly, so I followed you to keep an eye on you. I'm glad I did this honestly, I saved you from possible death" Mamoru says nonchalantly, keeping his pistol drawn. "My apologies if this causes trauma, I'll help deal with it later" He says with a small laugh to Airi and Ophelia. "You have one chance, Vusago. Leave now, and I will let you live. If you don't, I will shoot you." Mamoru says with a growl.

"You don't have the guts to pull that trigger" Vusago states rather confidently.

"Bullshit! I just killed two of your colleagues, I have no problem killing the rest of you if you piss me off or harm Karen or the others!" Mamoru says angrily. "One chance, leave...or die!" Mamoru growls very angrily, giving an ultimatum.

"...Everyone...we're leaving" Vusago says with regret, vanishing into the shadows with the other two surviving members. Mamoru sheaths his pistol and walks toward us, Ophelia and Airi shrinking when he gets close, understandably scared by what just happened.

* * *

"You three okay?" Mamoru asks us worriedly.

"Yeah...thanks Mamoru, if it wasn't for you, the three of us could've died. I owe you." I say with a bow.

"You've helped me so many times Karen, this is just me trying to repay one of those times. Besides, you're the main reason why I'm even alive, quite a few people were content to kill me back in Aincrad on floor 99." Mamoru says with a smile toward me, though he frowns when thinking about how Akihiko Kayaba manipulated things to make Mamoru the boss of floor 99. "I believe you two are Airi and Ophelia Takara?" He asks worriedly, fearful that he scared them, which he most definitely did.

"...Yeah...I...I..." Ophelia says, on the verge of a major break down. Airi seems unable to talk.

"Ophelia, Airi, everything will be okay...I promise...they won't harm you, I swear..." I say to the sisters, lightly embracing them to try calming them down.

"Karen-nee-chan..." Airi whimpers sadly. I've never seen her this sad before.

"Daijoubu Airi-chan...Daijoubu..." I say in a motherly tone, trying to calm down Airi. I've never seen her this terrified, but I have gone through situations like this before now. "_Sometimes I forget that although Airi is so strong, she's still an innocent little girl...she shouldn't have to deal with crap like this, ever..._" I think to myself sadly.

"Karen...this...reminds me of before...when you were the one to comfort us all when we were sad. I kinda missed you doing this when we were trapped in SAO" Ophelia says with nostalgia, closing her eyes.

"You know Karen, you'd make a decent parent yourself. How would you feel about becoming Haruka's foster mother?" Mamoru asks me half-sarcastically.

"Pass, I'm not exactly ready for such a thing yet. Besides, Haruka's only two years younger than me, it'd be awkward for a teenager to become a parent in this manner." I say casually, still trying to calm down these two.

"Eh, had to try...anyway, come on, I'm going to bring you three home." Mamoru says with a laugh at the start, but seriously at the rest. "Katsuo, Hikaru, Kana, and the others are being escorted by other members of the VR crime division. They sent me to protect you and Sylvia, though...with Sylvia and Kazuma off on their own..." Mamoru says quietly, pulling out a walkie talkie "This is Lieutenant Nakasone, Kazuma Takara and Sylvia Miyagawa left the area not too long ago, I'll be providing coordinates in a moment." Mamoru says to the walkie talkie, looking toward me.

I pull out my cell to get a hold of Sylvia

"What's up, Karen?" Sylvia asks me curiously.

"Sylvia, sorry to interrupt, but where are you? You could possibly be in danger." I say seriously.

"I'm at the corner of Leyard and Tsukio. _There goes my quiet walk with him_" Sylvia says casually and mutters the last part so quietly it's almost impossible for me to hear. Almost.

I hang up and tell Mamoru where Sylvia and Kazuma are, Mamoru relaying the location to his colleagues in the VR crime division.

"Thanks Karen, your friends will be safe now. Things are going to be a tad...hectic, so you, Airi, Ophelia, and Haruka will need to stay at your house. Hikaru, Katsuo, and Kana are staying with Kazuto for a short while, while Sylvia and Kazuma will be at Sylvia's house with Madoka and Tsubasa. All three of those houses will be under guard from members of the VR Crimes Division. I began planning all this when I began keeping an eye on you tonight. I hope you don't mind" Mamoru says apologetically.

"I for one don't mind, that's up to Airi and Ophelia, but...why is Haruka staying with us?" I ask. "_Madoka and Tsubasa will be there? That'll be...interesting, at the very least._" I say to myself.

"Haruka asked for it, believe it or not. Besides, I'd feel more at ease if she was with someone I could trust for a little while. The VR Crime Division will be compensating your families for this inconvenience and the surveillance. Haruka should be at your house within a half hour. Arigatou gozaimasu." Mamoru says, before heading to the corner he came from, waiting for us.

"Okay...Airi-chan, Ophelia-chan...if you're ready, let's go" I say worriedly to the sisters, hoping they can manage from the trauma from seeing two deaths.

"I'll be fine Karen...I just need some time..." Ophelia says rather depressed, but Airi is still unable to respond.

"Airi-chan...Ophelia, help me out a little bit..." I say sadly, crouching down slightly.

"Sure..." Ophelia says, lightly lifting Airi and placing her on my back.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [18:00] May 7th 2026

The three of us made it back to my house with the escort from Mamoru, Haruka already meeting my mother and father. Thankfully, my parents are alright with Ophelia and Airi staying with us, though it took some convincing on my part for them to accept having Haruka here, since they've never met before now.

"Haruka, I hope you don't mind that my parents can be a little...overbearing at times" I say a little sheepishly.

"I don't mind. Having a family around is a relief to me in a way." Haruka says happily.

"Oh yeah...you lost family twice...the Ballards and the Uchimayas...I hope you have better luck with Mamoru" I say apologetically.

"Yeah, I'm hoping for the same. Mamoru was close to my foster parents, so I'm hoping that this'll work." Haruka says optimistically.

"Ophelia...are you and Airi going to be okay?" I ask worriedly.

"I don't know...Airi's laying down in the guest room. She's still a little traumatized from what happened" Ophelia says quietly, still a little shaken from what happened. "I myself...am still shaken but...I think I can manage." Ophelia says with a sad smile.

"Ophelia, I'm going to try talking with her. Feel free to eat, you two" I say, walking to the guest room.

"Sure...I hope you succeed Karen..." Ophelia says with hesitation.

* * *

I leave the dining room and enter the guest room to find Airi sitting on a bed with her head downcast, still depressed, I take it.

"Airi-chan, you okay?" I ask worriedly.

"Karen-nee-chan...I'm..." Airi whimpers sadly, noticing I walked in. I sit down next to her. "Watashi...I'm...I'm scared nee-chan...I've never seen someone die before..." Airi says sadly, beginning to cry onto my shoulder.

"It's okay Airi...It's okay...the pain will pass in time, trust me...I've seen death happen before" I say quietly, trying to help her as best as possible.

"You...you've seen people die before, nee-chan?" Airi asks me in mild shock.

"Well...not in the way we've experienced tonight, but yes...I've seen at least a hundred people die, with a majority of them being my fault." I say quietly, remembering how I led a lot of people to their demise in Aincrad. "Getting over their deaths took ages for me...Airi, I don't want to sound mean but...you need to get over this as soon as possible. If you need a shoulder to cry on, I'm always open" I say with mixed tones.

"Nee-chan...I...I know I need to get over this but...there was so much blood..." Airi says, easing up slightly on the crying.

I hear a light knock at the door. If it wasn't for my training from Aincrad, I may not have even heard it.

"Come in" I say casually. The doorknob turns, and Haruka's at the other side, a tiny bit surprised.

"I'm surprised you heard that. Anyway...if you don't mind, I wanted to try helping." Haruka says in mild surprise, before walking toward us.

"Go ahead. I'm not going to turn down help. But...shouldn't you be eating, Haruka?" I ask curiously.

"Ophelia and I are waiting for the both of you, actually. We'd feel guilty if we ate before you two." Haruka says calmly. "Airi-chan, is there anything I can do to help?" Haruka asks worriedly, having learned that they have met indirectly once before; during the SAO closed beta.

"...You're...Haruka right? Are you...comfortable with death?"

"Oh, god, no. I may have seen death happen a lot, but I constantly reminded myself never to get...comfortable with it. None of us...wait, that's a bit incorrect: very few Sword Art Online players have ever gotten 'comfortable' with death, as it more or less symbolized that they've sacrificed their humanity. Even most of the Laughing Coffin members weren't comfortable with death. Airi-chan, I know you must be traumatized, but you have friends here to help you every step of the way. It'll be alright" Haruka says quietly, and in a serene tone at the end.

"I...I know...um...I am feeling a little hungry…" Airi says sheepishly, hearing her stomach rumbling.

"Airi, if you're feeling better, let's go get some food" I say with a small laugh.

"Sure" Airi says with a small smile.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [11:30] May 7th 2026

My team: Knights of the Blood Oath, or simply Knights, comprised of myself, Hikaru, Katsuo, Sylvia, and Kana; and Kazuma's team: Unity, comprised of himself, Ophelia, Airi, Yuuki, and Horizon, are outside Aarun surrounded by hundreds, if not thousands, of people, here to watch the match between our teams. As Mamoru, Kazuto, Asuna, and Haruka approach us, I notice a female player from the newest race that was created through a recent patch: Fimbulvet, which heavily specializes in devastating ice elemental magic with their distinguishing color being white, approach us. This race's territory is neutral and shared in Aarun. There aren't many people in this race yet, considering how new they are, but they are plenty strong despite their low numbers.

"Karen, Kazuma, best of luck all of you," Mamoru says with a smile on his Cait Sith avatar, using it because of their improved eyesight since he nearly always used ranged weaponry.

"Winter, I'm surprised to see you in this game" Sylvia says to the Fimbulvet player with a small laugh.

"Sylvia, you know this person?" I ask curiously.

"Yeah, this is Madoka, she decided to try experiencing a VRMMORPG for the first time. She decided to be in the Fimbulvet race since she's a total ice queen!" Sylvia says laughingly and sarcastically.

"Hey! That's mean!" Madoka whips out angrily.

"Doesn't mean it's not true!" Sylvia laughs, before getting hit in the face with a large ice elemental sphere, express delivery from Madoka. "Okay...I had that coming..." She responds with a nervous laugh, rubbing her cheek, with an angry scowl from Madoka.

"_Hey Sylvia...how'd it go?_" I ask her quietly.

"_With Kazuma?_" She asks me, with me nodding. "_Well...Madoka really warmed up to him, Tsubasa was a tiny bit angry that he's 'stealing' his nee-chan, but he liked Kazuma well enough. And Kazuma actually took the leap, it's pretty much official now!_" Sylvia says rather happily.

"_Congratulations!_" I say to her.

* * *

Our two teams split into small groups to talk privately, with myself and Sylvia talking to Kazuma; Katsuo talking with Zekken; and Kana, Airi, and Ophelia talking, with Horizon glancing toward Katsuo rather aggressively.

* * *

Karen, Sylvia, Kazuma POV:

"Well, Lady Ashikaga, l am looking forward to our match. May the best team win" Kazuma says very politely, with an inaudible laugh.

"I wish the same to you, Lord Izanagi. Truthfully, I hear you've been wanting to strengthen relations with the Undine and Imp, correct?"

"Yeah, and I hear things as well. You're being considered a candidate to become Imp leader. It's considered a great honor to be a faction leader." Kazuma says with a smile.

"_I heard you and Sylvia are officially dating, congrats_" I say in a whisper, changing the subject at this point.

"_Hehe...thanks. It's been difficult for me to try getting over you, but...well, Sylvia is a cute girl and I feel pity for her unfortunate situation as well._" Kazuma says with a mild blush.

"_Maybe I ought to have you two fight against each other, hehe._" I say with a laugh.

"_Unless you want to paralyze two of six fighters, don't, haha!_"

"_Yeah, I'm not that stupid!_" I say with a laugh. "_I should go, I need to talk with Madoka, Mamoru, Haruka, Kazuto, and Asuna. I'll let you and Sylvia talk more_" I say casually.

"_Many thanks._"

I walk away to give the new lovebirds a moment before the upcoming match.

* * *

Yuuki, Katsuo's POV:

"Well, this is it...we're about to fight." Yuuki says casually, with a smile.

"Yeah, this is it. One of our teams will come out victorious. I wish you the best of luck Yuuki" Katsuo says calmly.

"Same to you, Katsuo. Anyway, why don't we make a bet?"

"What kind of bet?" Katsuo asks curiously.

"If my team wins, we have to work as a pair team in the next combat MMO we play. We'd be working independently to win. Those are my terms. What are yours?"

"My terms...let's see…since you took the one I would've chosen… how about...If my team wins...what do you say to ingame marriage in the next casual MMO we play?" Katsuo states casually, putting his fist near his chin, trying to think of what to bet. He's slightly annoyed at how Yuuki stole the one thing he would've bet so he had to improvise on something.

Yuuki lights up like a christmas tree at what Katsuo states, and begins stuttering.

"Wh-Wh-What?!" Yuuki says very nervously.

"Do you have a problem with that? Or am I pushing the limit?" Katsuo asks curiously.

"I...I was just...caught off-guard! Um...sure, as long as it's kept ingame, I'll have no problem with that." Yuuki mutters with a heavy blush.

"Naturally, I'm dating Kana in reality, but even she said that she'd have no problem with me dating or even marrying other people as long as it's keep in MMOs." Katsuo says casually.

"...Okay...if you guys win, I'll marry you in the next casual MMO we play. Though if my team wins, you have to form a two-man team in the next combat MMO and focus on coming out on top." Yuuki says nervously at the start, and proudly at the end.

"Deal. Let's shake on it" Katsuo says, offering a single hand.

"Deal" Yuuki says, shaking his hand, making the bet legitimate.

* * *

Kana, Ophelia, Airi's POV:

"Airi, Ophelia...I heard you two went through hell last night...you both okay?" Kana asks worriedly.

"We'll be fine, Karen actually calmed us down a lot. She has a gift in that kind of area." Ophelia says, still feeling mildly shaken.

"I can understand that. She was overprotective of us all, and she was very determined to keep us alive, no matter how hard she pushed herself."

"Hehe...sounds like her, she is protective of her friends and tries to make them as powerful as possible in their own unique ways. I imagine you all have a unique gift or skill after working with her?" Ophelia says with a small laugh.

"I suppose. Although he has a small temper, Katsuo is very strong and does his best to protect his friends. Sylvia is a little on the shy side, but she does exhibit a strong side when she needs or wants to. So on, and so forth" Kana says casually.


	10. Disaster Strikes

Karen's POV:

I talk with Mamoru, Kazuto, Asuna, Haruka, and Madoka a little bit before the match starts, hoping to get info on Team Unity from them and for casual conversation

"Karen, best of luck, Kazuma's team is nothing to laugh at." Kazuto says seriously.

"I'm aware, but we've actually agreed upon a friendly match with no summoned monsters. That'll make things a little fair," I say, when I get a notice from outside of Alfheim. "**Get out! A man named Vusago broke in and is trying to find you all!**"

"Grr...Damn it!" I say angrily. When is Laughing Coffin going to stop?!

"What's wrong?" Haruka asks nervously, scared of my outburst.

"Vusago is up to his nasty tricks. Mamoru, tell the others to log out! And tell Kazuma to try to delay the match for an hour!" I say, about to log out, when my connection to Alfheim is forcibly severed by someone.

* * *

I see the leader of this particular group of the VR Crime Division: Sergeant Nichiren Amano by my bed. "My apologies Koizumi, but considering the circumstances, I can't let you remain in the virtual world."

After he says this, I hear sounds of fighting out in the hallway. Nichiren rushes out of the room, and in mild fear I grab a Shinai and a Beretta M9 for last resort cases I keep near my bed for safety's sake, and I rush outside to see what the hell is going on to find a group of ten fighting the security guards here in the hospital.

"What's going on here?!" I ask in obvious fear.

"These armed individuals began shooting up the place. I presume they were after you all, so we're holding the line here to keep you all safe" Nichiren says in a calm tone. Perhaps his time in the American Armed Forces helped make him calm during situations like this.

"Did any of them make it to Katsuo or the others?!" I ask worriedly.

"No, this is the only way to reach your friends. We're keeping them back, and we already called for reinforcements from the nearby guard station that should be here soon."

"Good to hear" I say, firing a few warning shots from behind a makeshift barricade, a tiny bit fearful of actually shooting one of these ten, even though they're all Laughing Coffin.

"Koizumi, you can't afford to be hesitant here, you need to shoot to kill!" Nichiren says angrily.

"I've never killed someone for real using weapons like these! You can't expect me to suddenly do something I've never done before!" I growl angrily.

* * *

I try to steel my heart to prepare for the next wave of attacks when Katsuo and the others arrive from their rooms after five minutes pass, though six of the fifteen guards were killed in the crossfire. I heard from Nichiren that there's at least a hundred people from LC attacking this hospital. They're spread out, but a majority are here, presumably trying to kill us while we were in Alfheim.

"Karen, what's going on? I got a notice about this building entering crisis mode!" Katsuo says seriously.

"Laughing Coffin's members launched a full assault on this place. We're pinned down until reinforcements arrive." I say seriously.

"I see...Hand me that Beretta, I'm a better shot and we need everyone we have" Katsuo says calmly.

"Go ahead" I say quietly, not wanting to bear ending the life of someone, even if they are evil. I lightly toss the Beretta to Katsuo, who uses it immediately to end the life of three of the LC members, to my shock.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [12:15] May 7th 2026

We've been fighting off LC's assault for about a half hour now, and we've thinned the 'horde' to forty but their full attention is on us, and we're down to only seven people: Myself, Katsuo, Sylvia, Kana, Hikaru, Nichiren, and one other guard.

"Nichiren...when are those reinforcements going to get here?!" I ask angrily.

"They're on their way, we just need to hold out" Nichiren says, his calm attitude pissing me off slightly.

"Look, if they don't get here soon, we're not going to make it! Especially since we're running out of ammo!" Katsuo growls angrily, shooting three more members of Laughing Coffin.

"_Sergeant Amano, we're outside the building. Give the word and we'll secure the site_" a familiar voice says through Nichiren's walkie talkie.

"About time! Get everyone in here immediately! We're down to seven, if you don't hurry your goddamn asses, we'll be killed too!" Nichiren states angrily.

"_Y-Yes sir!_" The voice says, obviously freaked out.

"Good news, reinforcements have finally arrived! If we just hold out for a few more minutes, we'll end the lives of these damn annoyances" Nichiren says proudly.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [12:30] May 7th 2026

The Japanese Virtual Crimes Division were apparently the ones who came to Nichiren's response, with Mamoru at the lead of this group. Only one person is alive from this LC horde: Vusago. I suspect that LC is keeping some people in reserve in case this operation failed, especially since I didn't notice Kanemoto or Shinkawa, or as I knew them; XaXa and Johnny Black. Katsuo returned the Beretta to me, and I notice there is only one round left in the clip. I'll need to refill it later.

"Give up Vusago, your peons from Laughing Coffin are all dead or apprehended." Mamoru says with a scowl.

"Not a chance!" Vusago growls angrily, drawing a pistol.

I react on the spur of the moment and, without thinking, fire the Beretta which ends up going straight through Vusago's chest, causing him to collapse. His blood spreads out across the floor as everyone stares at me in shock.

"I...I just..." I say, my voice cracking as I fall to my knees.

"Karen, it'll be okay, you did it to help us" Katsuo says, trying to comfort me over the fact I committed homicide, justifiable or not.

"...This is the second time I took a life intentionally...I thought it was bad enough with Hisae..." I say weakly. Taking lives is something I've never been good with.

"Karen, if it's any condolence, killing Vusago may have been for the best...He's too crafty, we couldn't risk merely arresting him" Mamoru says bluntly. "Anyway, I was able to convince the supervisor of the tournament to delay the match because of Team Viper causing frequent trouble. As soon as you guys are ready to log in, the match will start. To be honest, I would log in quickly. Everyone's worried about you all."

"Got it. Katsuo, Karen, Kana, let's get back to Alfheim. We can't let everyone down." Sylvia says, trying to be optimistic.

"Hm...your ability to remain optimistic in even the darkest situations baffles me Sylvia, but you're right. Let's get back." Katsuo says with a smile.

"...Mamoru, I want your men to protect us while we're in Alfheim this time around" I say quietly.

"Understood. All of you, spread out and keep this area safe. Send a group of six to watch the entrance."

"Yes sir!" The people from the VRCD say in unison.

"What's this about 'sir' Mamoru?" I ask curiously.

"Well, my uncle works with the Japanese government, and when I was freed, he pretty much forced me to work with the VRCD for the time being, not that I minded much. It's an honor to help people who end up in situations like ours. My connection gave me the rank of Lieutenant."

"I see. Let's go." I say, still shaken.


	11. Round 4: Team Knights vs Team Unity EXT

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works._

ailaxolotl, thanks like always

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [12:45] May 7th 2026

We've returned to Alfheim Online to find a temporary respite of the time originally scheduled for the tournament. Instead of noon, the match will now be at 1:00. A large majority of the people have spread out to either Aarun or the stands around this special arena. I notice a system announcement from the manager of this tournament from the company: Ymir.

"**We've decided to take a special twist on this finals match. Team Knights and Team Unity may choose two additional teams to assist them. Choose now!**"

I quickly send a PM to Kazuto's Team Wolf to ask for their assistance before Kazuma gets the chance, which succeeds as he sends this PM: "_Certainly, I'd be glad to join your team in fighting against Unity. Let me tell Asuna and the others. Who else do you plan to ask?_"

I send another PM to Eugene's team, and to my delight, they are not taken and they join my team's coalition against Unity. The ten of them: Kazuto, Asuna, Tsuboi, Rika, Keiko, Suguha, Eugene, Sakuya, Alicia, and Michiru gather around the five of us for planning our strategy. I notice that Kazuma called the two teams: Midnight and Reaper. All five members of Midnight are of the Fimbulvet race, and Reaper is a mixed group. The leader of Reaper is from Michiru's Royal Guard, the strategist is a female player among the Cait Sith Dragoons, and the warriors are a female Sylph Royal guard, a male Leprechaun and Gnome. My unified coalition makes some distance between everyone in the nearby field, specifically, Team Unity's coalition.

"Okay; Rika, Kana, and Alicia won't be very active in this match. Keiko, Michiru, and I will be working the controls in the match, leaving nine warriors: Hikaru, Sylvia, Katsuo, Kazuto, Asuna, Tsuboi, Eugene, Sakuya, and Suguha. Let's divide into three units of three. Keiko will lead Wolf, Michiru will lead Phoenix, and I'll lead Knights until we defeat Midnight and Reaper, then we'll combine whoever we have left to fight Unity."

"How are we going to work in the factor of summoned monsters?" Kazuto asks me.

"Right...Kazuma and I wanted a match without monsters, but I doubt Midnight and Reaper will follow that expectation. They'll want to win regardless of the means to get there. I'll need to send a PM to Kazuma and ask him to either tell them to not summon any monsters or withdraw the condition we had before," I say sadly.

* * *

Apparently, I didn't even need to send a PM, since both Yuuki and Horizon came to talk with me.

"Ashikaga, I imagine you may be worried about the teams Izanagi recruited, and...I'll be blunt in saying they are ruthless." Horizon says nonchalantly.

"What do you mean...ruthless? On what level?" Sylvia asks worriedly.

"They had no problem using backhanded maneuvers and tactics to try defeating us. We were too powerful for such plans to work, but they had no hesitation whatsoever to do whatever it took to win. Izanagi told me and Zekken not get involved with their fights." Horizon states emotionlessly.

"Your leader is telling you to stay back while our three teams rip Midnight and Reaper to pieces?" Michiru asks curiously.

"Not exactly. Karen, if you're willing, we came bearing an invitation of sorts. If you wish, the tournament managers are willing to create three different battlefields, and any survivors of a finished match will be brought into one of the other fights. The three of us want a private match with your team, and this is the best way to do so." Yuuki says calmly.

"How do we know you're not trying to lead us into a trap?" Kazuto asks mildly angrily.

"You do not need to believe us. My only motivation is to prove Yamakage is a weakling" Horizon states bluntly, not noticing Eugene's presence.

"How dare you speak harshly of him. Yamakage is your superior officer!" Eugene growls angrily.

"G-General!" Horizon says stutteringly. "Urk..."

"I'm civilized enough not to act snobbish when we're about to have a match. Let's save this hostility for after the match, where we'll have one final fight. If I win, you drop the issue for good. If you win, I'll grant you one request as long as it's within my power."

"One request eh..." Horizon makes a mild smirk after hearing this.

"_Within my power._" Katsuo repeats seriously.

"I'll accept Izanagi's offer." I state nonchalantly.

"Good to hear. I'll go bring the message to Izanagi" Yuuki says, walking away with Horizon in tow.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [13:00] May 7th 2026

We're about to begin the match with Katsuo, Hikaru, and Sylvia facing against Kazuma, Yuuki, and Horizon. A part of me is tempted to try sending Sylvia against Kazuma, but Kazuma's the weakest warrior in his team, while Sylvia herself is still a strong link to mine, so I'd be on the weak end if I do that, so I won't send her after him. Well...not right away.

I probably got lucky that I was able to inflict a great deal of damage to her, but I did sense the aura of a strong warrior when I faced Yuuki outside Orion Castle. After all, it's very difficult for me to believe that Katsuo, Kazuto, and Hikaru all fell against Yuuki, yet I've consulted people aside from those three, and all evidence proves that those three fell to her. I activate the comm channel to talk with Katsuo, Sylvia, Hikaru, and the others.

"I want to run a quick comm check considering how many people are in this match. Sound off." I say casually and seriously at the same time.

"Katsuo here!"

"Loud and clear," Sylvia says casually, with Hikaru, Eugene, Sakuya, Suguha, and Klein saying similar things in sequence.

"Loud and clear, Karen" Asuna says casually.

"Ready to fight!" Kazuto says happily.

"Strategist: Keiko, reporting in"

"Michiru, reporting."

"Everyone's crystal clear. Michiru, Keiko, play to your team's strengths and try to defeat Reaper and Midnight as quickly as possible. My team will have trouble fighting Unity, so we'll need your assistance as much as possible and as quickly as possible."

After this, Keiko and Michiru cut communication with my field so they can maintain their focus on their individual matches. I then see Airi's small avatar approach me, so I decide to meet her halfway.

"Airi, you okay? I know what happened yesterday was traumatizing for you and Ophelia." I ask worriedly.

"mmm...I think I'll be okay, Karen nee-chan. What happened was scary, definitely, but I need to stay strong for nii-chan, nee-chan, and the others." Airi says in an unsure tone.

"Airi, you've changed so much in the last four years. It felt like just yesterday that you were the eight year old girl that was so clingy, but here you are, a strong girl in your own right. I wish I could've seen you grow from when you were eleven, but I was sadly imprisoned in Aincrad during the three years." I say in a nostalgic tone.

"Nee-chan, THIS is partly why people claim you're motherly, hehe!"

"Hey, I'm trying to be nice here!" I say in a pout.

"...When we reunited in Alfheim, I was...I was so surprised at how different you acted yet I was happy to see you again. Your voice was different as well so that's why I never recognized you from your avatar."

"I don't blame you Airi. I couldn't recognize you because of your growth as well, despite the strong perception I had in Aincrad. I only recognized you when Kazuma revealed himself, and I...I had never been stumped twice before then."

"Come on nee-chan, our fighters need our direction. Let's save this chat for when my team wins!" Airi says with a calm tone, and a sarcastic laugh at the end.

"Oh, you are so going down!" I return in the same tone.

"Hehehe, best of luck nee-chan." Airi says with a smile, walking back to her side to access the console, with me doing the same.

* * *

I walk back to the console to activate my communication headset and glance down at the frozen tundra environment that was chosen for the final match.

"What's your status, everyone?"

"Hikaru and I are fighting Kazuma while Sylvia is fighting Horizon single handedly. Yuuki is holding back for some reason, maybe Kazuma's ordering her to save her strength in case he and Horizon are defeated."

"Oh, crap...if Yuuki is keeping her strength in reserve, she'll have an advantage when you all face her! But we can't afford to attack her directly while Kazuma and Horizon are active..."

"What do we do Karen?" Katsuo asks worriedly, blocking an attack from Kazuma's spear.

I merely exhale in mild annoyance. "Listen; Katsuo, Hikaru, defeat Kazuma as quickly as you can, then go help Sylvia fight Horizon. Once you do so, focus on defensive fighting until you can get help from Wolf or Phoenix."

"Understood!"

* * *

I can see Katsuo and Hikaru going all-out with increased vigor against Kazuma. He's barely holding on, and falls within an hour. Sylvia, meanwhile, is having difficulty keeping herself strong against Horizon. Her attacks with her two-handed sword clash heavily with his longsword and shield and, surprisingly, a final strike eliminates the both of them simultaneously.

"Damn...we defeated Horizon and Kazuma, but we lost Sylvia. Guys, stay back and try to recover your strength! Do not confront Yuuki until either Phoenix or Wolf arrives!"

"Uh...not possible Karen, she's charging straight at us! We'll be lucky to keep ourselves alive!" Hikaru says worriedly, taking a defensive stance by Katsuo.

* * *

Real Life Standard Time: [14:30] May 7th 2026

Hikaru and Katsuo are barely holding on under the heavy intensity of Yuuki's attacks with her dual blades. Katsuo has been able to return some strikes while defending with his tower shield and trying to stop her from reaching Hikaru. I receive a PM from Michiru and Keiko at this point.

"**Karen, Sakuya and Leafa were defeated but we just managed to succeed, Eugene is on his way to reinforce you guys.**"

"**We just finished our match, we lost Tsuboi and Asuna, but Kirito-san made it through and is coming to help you. Hold tight!**"

At this point, I see two beams colored red and black quickly enter the arena at the moment Yuuki breaks through Katsuo's defenses and slays Hikaru. The beams materialize in the form of the heavily armored Salamander player: General Eugene and the lightly armored Spriggan: Kirito, who quickly fly toward Katsuo's location to lend a helping hand. Yuuki is caught off-guard by the sudden reinforcement Team Knights received, which Katsuo takes advantage of by switching to Onyx Shark and Titanium Heart and activating his OSS.

* * *

"Wings of Annihilation, Set my enemies aflame. Fusion Lance!" Katsuo shouts, getting a hit on Yuuki with the Onyx Shark, paralyzing her long enough to finish her off with Fusion Lance and sending her flying, reducing her to a violet Remain Light, but before the final blow is inflicted, the pair exchange final words, which I happen to hear from the communication application.

"Yuuki, you did excellent, no question. You are the strongest opponent I have ever faced in all my four years of playing MMOs."

"Same here. Try to enjoy the praise, since you just won against the strongest warrior in Alfheim" Yuuki says with a smile, closing her eyes before being defeated.

After Yuuki is reduced to vanish light status, I breathe deeply in relief and see the system announcement.

"**Team Knights has won the Ragnarok Tournament. The five players: Ashikaga, Yamakage, Minatoya, Ulkaios, and Krisaga are hereby named: Champions of Alfheim Online. They will be hereby known as Alfheim's Valkyrias!**"


	12. Finale

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything apart from the words that I write and the characters that I create. Credit goes to the original creator of the SAO universe; credits also to the creators and contributors to the Code Lyoko series and related works._

ailaxolotl, thanks like always

* * *

Myself, Katsuo, and Airi are enveloped by the bright light we've become accustomed to and find ourselves with my team, Kazuma's team, and our closest friends outside the dome that leads to Yggdrasil.

"Congratulations, Karen! You guys won the tournament!" Mamoru says happily.

"It wasn't easy; Yuuki was pretty close to beating Katsuo."

"Karen, let me be a bit blunt, but...I actually only fought at half strength. I wanted to win for my team, but my strong determination was wavering when I faced you all directly. I just didn't exactly have what it took to go all-out." Yuuki says quietly.

"Either way, we can't turn back time" Kazuma says, defeated.

"You know, Sakuya, Alicia, Horizon, Eugene; we actually know the real names of everyone in this group but you four. Even Michiru was willing to give her real name" I state calmly.

"Hmm...We have good reason to keep our identities private, but I suppose that since a large majority among us know their real identity..." Eugene says calmly.

The group of four deliberate amongst each other and quickly come to a decision.

"Shoda Morioka. That's what my name is" Horizon states quietly.

"Nobuatsu Takahashi." Eugene says.

"Sumiko Taketomo" Sakuya states casually.

"Michiko Mizukuro" Alicia states with a small smile.

"Well, Shoda-san, Nobuatsu-san, Sumiko-san, Michiko-san, yoroshiku" Sylvia says calmly.

"Nee-chan, I never knew you were this strong! I imagine Aincrad must've had at least one good quality to it" Madoka says with a small smile to Sylvia.

"Aincrad was terrifying, yes, but having death looming over you at all times has a gift for training you to survive anything. Though Karen was the reason a majority of us survived" Sylvia states calmly.

"Sylvia!" I say in embarrassment.

"Don't even try denying it, Karen." Katsuo says, with Hikaru, Sylvia, and Kana nodding rather mischievously.

"You guys are evil..." I say, crying a little.

* * *

Suddenly, I receive a PM from the council of the Imp nation.

"**Excellent news, Ashikaga. The player Aleia withdrew from the election as Imp leader since the pressure was becoming a little too intense for her, and a majority of her votes went towards you. You have been elected as Imp Leader by majority vote. Congratulations, Lady Ashikaga!**"

I openly smile, which everyone notices.

"What's up?" Haruka asks me.

"One of the three candidates for the succession dropped out, and a majority of the support to that candidate went to me. As a result, I was made Imp Leader by the majority vote."

"Woah, congratulations _Lady_ Ashikaga!" Sylvia says happily, with a sarcastic smirk. "_But wait...you said you were going to be in Gun Gale Online. How will you manage such things? Won't you need to be on Alfheim rather often?_" Sylvia asks, recognizing the potential issue on hand.

"_Don't worry, I consulted the council when I was nominated and they are more than capable of leading the nation in place of the leader in nearly everything, but there are certain things only the leader can do. So I only really need to be on once a week or so._" I say calmly, since I'm going to be busy with Gun Gale Online soon.

* * *

At this point, a male Undine player approaches us.

"Chrysheight, what are you doing here?" Kazuto asks in surprise.

"Ashikaga, Yamakage, Kirito, Pulse, Zekken, Yūgana, I wish to speak with you six privately. Come with me"

"And why should we?" Katsuo demands with a hint of anger. He hates it when people bark orders at him. Aside from the others in Senryaku, he rarely listens when others try to force him to do things.

"Katsuo, Chrysheight was part of the SAO Case Victims Rescue Force. They were the ones who brought all ten thousand of us to the hospitals that kept us alive during Aincrad. Let's just hear what he has to say." Mamoru says in a mildly calm tone with a hint of fear at Katsuo's outburst. I presume he's nervous about how Chrysheight would respond to it.

* * *

The six of us go with Chrysheight to a small house in the city, leaving Sylvia, Hikaru, and everyone else at the dome.

"What's this about, Kikuoka?" Mamoru asks very seriously.

"There's a report that came through about an American made MMOFPS called Gun Gale Online. There are rumors that a recent string of deaths is linked to this MMO. The details are still vague so I need your group to investigate things discreetly."

"So...let me get this straight. You want us to join Gun Gale Online to investigate something you know next to nothing about?" I ask with unseeable anger.

"...Essentially."

"Our taxes go to support _this_?" Katsuo asks with both anger and sarcasm.

"Calm down, Katsuo. Remember that you, Kazuto, Mamoru, and I were going to play Gun Gale Online anyway. There shouldn't be a problem if a different reason is given to us to play this MMO. But anyways, Chrysheight; I can understand you asking me, Katsuo, Kazuto, and Mamoru since we were in Aincrad, but why Ophelia and Yuuki?"

"I've been watching all of the teams during the tournament. Alongside the fact that you four were in Sword Art Online, young Zekken here was able to defeat a dozen experienced fighters from Sword Art Online, not counting your friends. Her power is beyond comparison as a result and I learned through my contacts that Hikaru Murai lost his body and was granted a new one, crafted through Yūgana's intellect and resourcefulness with technology. Her skill set will be helpful in this. I picked you six for this because of your unique skills. Solaris, you have a gift with strategy and leadership, and I ask that you use your gifts once more to acquire the answers the government seeks in this MMO. Masaru, Kirito, Zekken, you three have remarkably strong strength and adaptability. Use those skills to aid your friends. Pulse, your precision with ranged weaponry is remarkable, in reality and in the virtual world; use your talents to aid them. Yūgana, as I said before, you are incredibly resourceful. Use your cleverness to your advantage." Chrysheight says, pride oozing from his words.

"Very well, we'll do it" I say with a sigh.

"Don't think you'll be doing this for nothing. The government is prepared to offer 80,000 yen* for each of you in exchange for this."

"Eighty thousand yen...wow...that's quite a tempting offer." Katsuo says with a whistle, surprised how much Chrysheight is offering for this.

"And for us six...that's 480,000 yen in total!" Yuuki says in awe.

"Either way Chrysheight, we won't be able to do this straightaway. We do have school to worry about." I say seriously.

"How about this, Kikuoka; Ophelia, Yuuki, and I will enter Gun Gale Online straightaway and gather information. Kazuto, Karen, and Katsuo can join in when they get the opportunity."

"That is acceptable to me. But know that this needs to be done as soon as possible. Do not take too long in doing this."

"Yeah, yeah, we'll do this as quickly as we can, but we've lost three years of our lives, and we do need to make that a priority for us." Katsuo says with a hint of anger.

* * *

Sylvia's POV:

Karen, Katsuo, Kazuto, Mamoru, Ophelia, and Yuuki left the area with an Undine player, leaving myself, Hikaru, Kana, Asuna, Haruka, Keiko, Madoka, and Rika around the dome to the Grand Tree: Yggdrasil. Michiru and the others left not after they did as well. We were about to head to Kana's shop when a single Krab approaches us all

"**I was hoping I'd see you all here. I am here to bring a message to you all**" The Krab states, broadcasting XANA's message to those of us here.

"What message do you have?" I ask curiously, wondering why XANA sent a monster all the way into a city zone.

"**The Floating Castle of Aincrad will be installed into this Alfheim server tomorrow at 8:00 AM. If you so desire, you have the opportunity to perform what you have done in the past: Clear Castle Aincrad.**"

We all gasp in shock upon hearing that Aincrad is being brought back after the deletion of Sword Art Online.

"A-Aincrad is being brought back?! Karen and Katsuo will want to hear about this!" Kana says in utter shock.

"I wouldn't actually. We shouldn't force them to stay in Alfheim when they may want to experience Gun Gale Online. It may seem unfair but we should let them do what they want." I say quietly.

"Well, I know we won't be able to reform Senryaku with Karen, Katsuo, Kazuto, and Mamoru not here. They were our core members, and we're down to just you, Kana, Keiko, and myself." Hikaru says quietly, with him not feeling right about reforming Senryaku without the full group around.

"Why don't we form a new party...Heikō? It's the japanese word for Equilibrium." I ask the group in a serious tone.

"I wouldn't mind joining your group Kana-chan, Sylvia-san, Hikaru-san." Keiko says in an upbeat tone, wanting to help the reformed Senryaku unit from Aincrad.

"Sorry Sylvia, but I'll be working solo for this. Liz, would you want to help me with my equipment?" Asuna says in a mildly sad tone.

"I'd have no problem with that Asuna. I'd be glad to help one of my best customers back in Aincrad." Rika says with a smile.

"Nee-chan, I want to join in on this. Although it won't be the same, I want to know exactly what you lived through during your time in Aincrad." Madoka says in a calm tone.

"So we have myself, Hikaru, Kana, Keiko, and Madoka joining our new Heikō party. Based on our skills…Kana, I presume you have no problem with being our smith again?"

"I'm not much into combat. I loved being a smith back in Aincrad. So yeah, I'll take up that role again"

"Glad to hear it. I do use a heavy two handed sword, but I've built up a lot of support skills in my time here. I'll take up a role of short to mid range fighter/supporter. Keiko, you've gotten a lot better with strategies since Karen was teaching you in Aincrad. While you don't have the Unique Skill: Sleuth, would you mind staying in the back ranks, leading us all?"

"I'd have no problem with it, but I do want to fight every now and then."

"That can be arranged. Hikaru, I know you're a strong warrior, but I want you to focus on your speed so you can protect Madoka and Keiko, the Fimbulvet race is not good with melee confrontation, but their magical power is remarkably high. We'll need a front rank warrior to handle the fact that Katsuo isn't with us, Hikaru working on guarding our back ranks, and me being as the buffer. Having a specialized healer will be helpful as well, probably from the Undines."

"How about we plan this out when Aincrad is actually brought into Alfheim." Kana says calmly.

"Fine by me" I say with a smile, unable to believe that we're getting the chance to relive Aincrad.

* * *

*(A/N: 80,000 Yen roughly equals 800 US Dollars)


End file.
